


Water of the Kyber

by Vani_the_dread



Series: Water of the Kyber [1]
Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Star Wars Setting, Clone Wars Spoilers, Din Djarin Needs a Hug, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Good Parent Din Djarin, Het, Heterosexual Sex, Himbo Din Djarin, Jedi Code (Star Wars), Masturbation, Mutual Pining, Original Character(s), POV Din Djarin, Plot With Porn, Protective Din Djarin, Relationship(s), Sexual Tension, Slow Burn, Soft Din Djarin, Swordfighting, The Force, The Mandalorian (TV) Spoilers, all the feels, clone wars au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-15
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-13 11:49:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 87,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28777830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vani_the_dread/pseuds/Vani_the_dread
Summary: Sometimes the best way to stay hidden, is to hide in plain sight. Alura Lumenya is a woman who only exists for a few hours a night; Once the party is over, she goes back to being a nameless shadow.As Lu flees one dangerous situation, she finds herself in another. But this one comes with a devastating twist that throws her back into a life she had been trying to deny.A chance meeting on a rocky planet has her suddenly facing her past in a way she could have never anticipated. Setting her future on a path that she is powerless to deny. Echoes of events so ancient they're more legend than history, and she's left untangling the threads to sort out what it all means. For herself, for the people that exiled her, for this tiny green infant and his silent, brooding armoured guardian for whom she has a bizarre six-degrees-of-separation thing going on.Lu's only option is to roll with what the Galaxy keeps throwing at her as she unravels the past and relearns to live in the present.
Relationships: Din Djarin/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Water of the Kyber [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2110095
Comments: 65
Kudos: 57





	1. The Singer

**Author's Note:**

> 02/12 edit: I LOVE THIS COMMUNITY! Please bare with me Im a self-employed artist so spending time on this lately has been difficult as I handle Etsy orders and art commissions. DO YOU WANT TO SEE WHAT LU (kinda) LOOKS LIKE? I tried to draw her lol https://dreadfulvee.tumblr.com/
> 
> 01/29 edit: HOLY Comments 😭😭😭😭 I'm so thankful for the comments y'all amazing. Din POV for chapter 13 and this is where we start to really crank it up 🥴🥴🥴❤️❤️❤️
> 
> \---
> 
> I did some editing while on my phone with a touchy digitizer and my note deleted when I uploaded last chapter? 🙃🙃🙃 (OH LOL it was when I was editing tags... also how does tag? seriously Im new plz halp; suggestions????)
> 
> Anyway; story follows basic outline of the show. Trying to not be too crazy verbose so there's some shortish chapters. This whole idea spawned from old SW DnD characters made for a Clone Wars campaign from like eons ago lol
> 
> I haven't written in a long time so please bare withme. I write this on my phone so there's small typos and shit sorryyyyy lol 
> 
> Please identify Lu however you see fit; full disclosure I'm a boring cis girl so Lu is written like that lol but fanfiction is for every one so yeah.
> 
> Hope ya'll love this take. There's buildup and character crap in the beginning but we gonna get to the good stuff sooooon I promise!

Lu was already sick of this place. When the name of this planet stuck out to her, snooping through the shipping manifests and shipment schedules. Looking for any ship to take her as far away from Port Tooga as she could get, as fast as she could get. She had been so certain that this system was where the Gods felt it best she should go. Nevarro _sounded_ like a place that should have been green. She had thought that's why it seemed she was supposed to choose this one. It had _sounded_ right. 

But instead of the lush grasses and tall trees she was dreaming of, she was met with vast black volcanic fields streaked with glowing molten lava rivers. Mineral heavy air and a sky mostly overcast and dull. The systems prime star trying to break through and make the Nevarran sky a bluer shade of grey. The planet felt almost devoid of life. But there was hardly such a thing, she knew; It was there, _The Song_ could still be heard. It strained at the very edge of Lu's awareness. it was everywhere life was, a deep thrum ever present in Lu's mind, it could even be perceived in space though it often sounded far away and distant. This place had plenty of creatures adapted to the harsh conditions, their _songs_ intertwining into the louder orchestra of the various people in the city. 

There was something else here on Nevarro too, however. A _song_ she had never heard before. Deep and almost… _percussive_? She wasn't even sure if she was _hearing_ it right. If it was even real at all. To Lu it felt like ghosts of the Imperial control here hung in the air as much as the sulfur and ash…

Maybe the percussive _song_ was why she felt Nevarro was right? Though, spending a lot of time in space surrounded by so much that was artificial for so long probably scrambled her brain, or something, anyway

Lu huffed and tried to wiggle deeper into the bedding of her rented room. It was dimly lit, a single light above a small table, and a single chair. The bed against the opposing wall, with a locker chest at the foot where she keeps her most precious items; the smallest standing water shower in the corner Lu'd ever seen; though there was a sink and a privy, too thankfully. She didn't even unpack when she got in, just plunked her entire life in the chest before flopping into the bed out of exhaustion. The cantina owner agreed to contract the apartment as a part of her employment. 

She just had really, _really_ wished she knew it had been a Light forsaken Hunter's den before she agreed. Port Tooga Station hadn't been ideal, by a long stretch; and it had its fair share of Hunter's come through, searching for quarries… but what it _wasn't_ was a place that housed a Hunter's Guild Registrar. It was Hutt territory, sure. But it didn't house The Bounty Hunter's Guild.

The Guild Registrar here was a man named Greef Karga. And he was known to have a taste of the _finer_ things the galaxy had to offer, according to the local gossip… made sense why the cantina owner was so eager to get Lu working as fast as possible. Apparently the owner here had heard of her through the circuit. This wasn't a surprise to Lu. She got bodies in the door, her stage name somewhat prominent among the _entertainment_ circles in sections of the Outer Rim. And there's nothing like a song, a slinky dress, and a fantasy to get the credits flowing; Lu was the best at it. She could have easily made a name for herself in the Core but too much success brought too many eyes. And she didn't mind quieter places in the Galaxy where maintaining secrecy was simply easier, if at a higher personal risk. Places like Nevarro were always looking to bring in more credits.

The small city already had Twi'lek healing baths, so a cantina singer for entertainment to "class" the place up a little seemed like something a man like Karga would request. He was older, prim and proper but without being prickly. His voice warm and kindly with a touch of deviousness; his _song_ much the same. He gave the impression of being every one's friend, or kindly yet eclectic uncle. He wasn't tall and he has a softness to him that did nothing to tell Lu that he wasn't dangerous. He took himself as a real philanthropist, looking out for the "little people" of the humble city. His tone of voice rang _true_ , he wanted for Nevarro to prosper; but his _song_ rang in ways that made Lu question his motives and means in which to do so. 

"Alura, my dear. Let's toast to this new business venture!" The way he said her name rang _false_ in her ears as they first met upon her arrival to the planet. "Nevarro is a place where a beautiful creature such as yourself can be most appreciated." That didn't ring _false_ either, but she couldn't place his deal.

Lu didn't know what to make of him, and she hoped she wouldn't be here long enough to decide on it. Men in his position weren't kind to women like her for the sake of it. She was, in effect, a nobody. But part of the _fantasy_ was that it never looked that way. She smiled sweetly and made herself fawn over him some; showering him with praise. Though she politely declined his offer of Spotchka to which he looked disappointed. He was a conundrum, this man. It was a relief when she was given the access code to her contracted apartment on the far back side of the cantina's building. She got straight to bed and waited for a fitful sleep to take her. 

Lu's alarm buzzed. She groaned and reached out to the table, slapping her data pad to silence it. She seriously didn't feel up to the theatrics today, and if one damn Hunter oversteps their bounds she may actually quit this bullshit gig altogether. But she knew she better get on with it. Even though that damn _song_ was lingering in the corners of her mind, there was work to be done. She reluctantly left the relative comfort of the bed and approached the tiny standing shower. 

Transforming into her stage self was a process. This was her first night back in the job since she paid out that contract on Tooga and hightailed it the hell out of there; she felt nerves creep in the pit of her stomach even as the hot water hit her skin. She didn't dawdle, if she stayed focused on doing what needed to be done, it would all be over before she knew it. And she could slink secretly back to her apartment and crawl back into bed. Lu wouldn't have to think about her current circumstances if she was asleep.

  
  
_A damn Hunter's den… You idiot._

After the shower came re-braiding her natural hair and securing her long wavy blonde wig, tightly. She unwrapped a dress from its protective roughspun wrap, letting it unfold in her hands. She had a surprising variety of clothing for all fitting in her pack, though some of the articles were particularly small. Some were meant for layering underneath, including corset and waist cinchers; she wasn't thick waisted but going to these lengths made all the difference in earning credits and maintaining her double life.

Alura's most elaborate ensemble included multiple pieces, undergarments and gown all encrusted with gems from neck to ankle. _That_ was for a particular show she hadn't done in a very long while. It was only for the big leagues and would be wasted here. The one she selected today was one she considered her go-to. High, partial illusion neckline on the bodice; a thin mesh met with a thin golden textile for a sweetheart bustline, complete with full length sleeves. The skirt was kept close to amplify her exaggerated shape but had a high slit so she could still move. Crystalline beads and gold payettes adorning every seam and cascading in thicker rows as it flowed down to her ankles. It was meant to cover her but show off just enough at the same time.

She'd repaired this particular gown a hundred times. The payettes always falling off, some beadwork frayed. There were some small holes in the lining and some seams worn. Lu felt like this dress, a thing of beauty but if you got too close you'd see she'd had better days; No one was really looking for any missing beadwork on her clothing, anyway. if they did, she wasn't doing her job right. Her job was to make a cantina full of people want to see her without it. The thing that keeps them coming back, is that they never fully got to. 

She sat in front of the table mirror and set in to paint her face. It helped shift her features; painted new shadows and highlights, straightened her nose. Darkened her eyes with pigments and slicked a pearlescent mica over her legs, and over her knuckles and fingers. Put on simple gold drop earrings that looked nice, but had actually been pretty cheap. She quickly adorned her nails with some spare jewels she kept stashed in a couple small pots. Due to the nature of her birth she was gifted with a natural glimmer so the mica and rhinestones distracted from it. The high points of all her features head to toe, where bones are closest to the skin, she herself _did_ actually glimmer with an iridescent sheen. Her collarbones and elbows, knuckles and nails, and even her knees and ankles some could vaguely catch certain lighting. A rarity in the Galaxy… she considered herself lucky it wasn't as obvious as it could be. 

Waist cinched, back straight and hips swaying, her opening walk through the market to advertise her presence attracted stares. Her footwear made walking over the rough and jagged volcanic streets of the small city a task she didn't ever realize _could_ be so difficult. Volcanic fields were meant for flat leather boots. Not strapped heels. She got whistled at, and cat-called, but she smiled and waved at those that did; even when they spoke in languages she didn't know. This was her job, even if she hated this part. She didn't want to know what vulgar shit they were saying, anyway. The ones that did speak Basic were bad enough. But she made sure to speak to any one who asked sweetly, and openly so they knew where they would find her for a show. She felt like a billboard, flat and one dimensional. It always felt that way. 

The kids were always the hardest to see in rough shape of course. Nevarro was a rough place. Lu stood out like a sore thumb here. The locals almost couldn't _not_ look at her, surrounded by soot and black rock. Some watched as she slipped a few credits in the dirty palm of a tiny girl who was skinny, but brave enough to approach and say hello. Lu felt tired, but she told herself she wasn't going to half ass this, if she made more than she expected, she would save it to give to some kids again. She didn't need much being by herself, anyway. Just enough to save up over the length of the contract and pay for a way off this rock. The only thing Lu really wanted was to go back to bed. But as the sky darkened, she set off to the cantina. 

The place was in high spirits and the credits flowed as much as the liquor. The people here were almost desperate for some break in the dreary landscape. Lu could feel the low mood that hung over the city in general. At the heart of it all? The cantina she now found herself at, full to the brim with rowdy Hunters anticipating a show; The contrast jarring to her senses. The couple serving girls that worked the cantina were nice. Showed her the ropes and let her know who to keep an extra sharp eye on, introduced her to the small band that played regularly. Between them, the owner himself and his bartending droid, they managed to keep up with the packed house. 

But it didn't matter that she was a fake fantasy woman when she stepped out into the little corner of the cantina, and every single body in the place stopping to a dead halt the second her voice came over the crowd. And for that moment Lu could almost miss the rush; for a brief time, she truly was Alura Lumenya. the jewel of the Outer Rim, and she _was_ a magic woman who captivated the audience and became living art. Her voice was something that set her apart, made her special, and she knew it. It was her birthright. The legacy of her mother, her grandmother, and her grandmother's mother. Going back and back for thousands of years. A voice that froze armies, made conquerors fall to their knees. A voice that eons ago had called upon the God's and had them answer, changing the very face of the Galaxy itself, if the legends were to be believed. 

For a couple of hours, an entire city felt like it had come and gone through the doors. For all she knew, it very well may have. Alura did her best to entertain them. She gave everything wanting to make a powerful first impression; her job was to ensure that an entire room of people felt like she was there just for them. Flashing smiles and sparkling leg as all manner of the patrons cheered. Lu Weaved from table to table as she kept singing, occasionally stopping to interact with the crowd or tell a joke; she didn't think she was funny, but she'd never met a cantina crowd that didn't like a suggestive, or out-right raunchy story. She didn't get too bold, though, this place was too new. This crowd too rough and eager to fight, and _fuck_. It wasn't as if that wasn't the point, she was doing all she could to put that idea in their brains. That is her job, after all. Drunk and _horny_ bar hounds and Hunters alike are loose with their credits. It's a game of high risk and potential high reward.

When it was all over, though, Lu was grateful. The air in this place was thick and she wasn't accustomed. She'd spent too much time in transit to Nevarro. Her lungs felt like they wanted to collapse, her corset becoming painful, legs and toes felt simultaneously numb and on fire. She was thankful that this time, no one got handsy.

Karga, the owner, and the serving girls were shocked at the take-home once the last of the patrons drunkenly stumbled out and the credits were counted. Karga's skin was too dark and rich to see the red of cheeks and ears that would give a fairer person's drunkenness away. The only thing was that his speech was markedly more slurred when he made his last toast to her as the credits were dolled out. The way his words smashed together and stumbled while being rather thespian grated on Lu's ears. She wasn't much a fan of liquor herself, but she absolutely was not fond of drunks. The relative solitude of the back exit and alley to her apartment was welcome. 

Lu was almost sure she'd take a drink right about now, though; her mood so dour. Her body ached, her toes were numb. The sky was dark, it had cleared some so you could see some stars. The clicking of her heels was echoing off the walls of the alley she was walking down. She had already stocked up on some food to keep her in her apartment as much as possible. Bad enough she was using her stage name here openly, but it was worth the inconvenience. If she didn't, it'd be like being a greenhorn all over again. The credits came with her name… Port Tooga was on the other side of the Outer Rim though. It was immensely unlikely she'd run into any past complications this far away.

_Light, I'm getting so tired of this…_

She intended on a shower immediately. Turning the hot water on the moment she entered, pressing the flat touch-switch and tossing her wig on the bed. Her strapped heels kicked off and she planted her bare feet flat to relax them. Lu shook her natural hair. The sections at the front that framed her face were mostly dark golden blonde. In the dim light it looked dingy, sweaty stray hairs sticking to her forehead. The rest was plaited into five brilliant white braids, the longest nearly reaching the back of her knee. Her corset, undergarments and dress a forgotten pool on the floor at her feet. She looked over at the tiny mirror above the table; Lu kept it dimly lit in here but she could make out her own flesh in the mirror. She was only _partially_ Alura now. 

Everything about her natural self was mismatched. Mismatched hair. Mismatched eyes, blue and green. To save from unwanted questions she wore contacts on the job. Camouflaged her unusual glimmer with micas, adhesives and rhinestones so it blended in. Everything about her felt like a lie. Where did the fantasy end and Lu begin? She almost didn't remember what it was like to be a single person instead of a fractured half-life, avoiding people but also requiring to be in front of people to make ends meet; and none of them ever getting to know her. She didn't _fit_ anywhere. She never really had; she was an outcast even amongst her own people. Her lineage _complicated_ one.

_An offense to the Gods…_

She would have almost fallen completely into that self wallowing train of thought if that damn percussive _song_ wasn't still there, nagging at the back of her brain. Lu slid the glass panel of the shower and stepped into the steam of the hot water. It was nearly scalding but she barely felt it. She stood, her head and shoulders underneath the weak pressure of the water. She would have loved to just sit down and sit under the water and let it hide the tears threatening to escape down her cheeks. but Nevarro was a dry place and water often rationed. She resigned herself to pushing her feelings down and got to business. She didn't want to pay for any over use of the precious resource. 

She washed Alura's face down the drain, removing all trace of the woman who just earned a Hunter's den a week's worth of credits In a single night. Feeling empty, lost and alone. 

_This place is bantha shit._


	2. The Hunter

It had been just over a week since she'd arrived. Today was another day she put on Alura's face and clothes to walk the market again. It was the fourth time, and she was beginning to recognize some faces in the market. This day, however, some stares Alura got were daggers. She was out and about to try and distract her from last night's disaster at the cantina. This morning it was as if it had never happened, the staff had moved quickly to get the blood and blaster marks of the floors and walls.

A Hunter had gotten bold and had grabbed her, sitting her down in his lap like she was a plaything. Lu made him regret it. Her thin, small knife was hidden just beneath the hem of the dress slit. In a swift single motion she plunged it into his outer thigh and had used his shock to get out of his grasp. Nevarro would learn that she had  _ rules _ .

Chaos broke out as one of his associates leapt to grab her throat, a blaster bolt took him in the chest and he fell. Alura had felt the air from his hand missing her bare neck. The stench of ozone flooded her nose and her senses became momentarily overloaded from the explosion of violence. 

Karga had been the one to fire the shot in her defense, he had immediately ushered her out the back while her brain was short circuiting. Fists and blaster bolts alike exploded around her.

"We'll call it a night. It'll be fine tomorrow. They just need to have their moment." he said not unkindly, he wasn't displeased with her. Though he sounded disappointed that his associates overstepped their bounds.

" _ Next _ time though, don't put yourself at such risk." his tone almost sounded like he was counting the credits she wouldn't make him if she got injured _.  _ She was angry, wanted to scream at him that she was  _ not _ to be trifled with; that she may look delicate but she could kill enough of them to make a point before they got to her to retaliate. Bile rose in Lu's throat.

_ Fucking Hunter's. Light forsake the fucking lot of them.  _ She however opted to stay silent. It was frustrating, but it was easier when people assumed she was just some pretty little song bird and did the work for her. 

"Goodnight, Miss Alura." Karga nodded to her and departed to deal with the chaos. She would have maybe been angry directly at him if it wasn't the way of the galaxy. The credits she earned had more value than her at the end of the day. Injury meant no work, meant no credits. And she wasn't even going to entertain anything beyond injuries. She wasted no time getting back to her apartment.

The being lunged at, the hands feeling entitled to her, and the violent response to her  _ rebuke _ were all too common an occurrence in her profession. Hell, if she could just stand there and get paid to beat the shit out of drunken cantina patrons, without all of the theatrics, that'd be great. Lu had once adored being sparkly and glittery, but it was easier to fight in leathers.

Her memory of the night prior was interrupted by a gaggle of some of the local kids she'd seen around. The little girl from the first day obviously spread the word. They were running over, breathless from yelling for her. She slipped credits in their hands telling them "don't spend it all on junk food, okay?" and "wash your hands before you eat" ; answered some questions, "my favourite colour? Green." and "No, I'm not a princess." and "Yes, these shoes hurt, but they're pretty...Yeah, I know that's weird." among other random things they wanted to know before shooing them off so she could go about her business. 

"You're too kind, miss. And you do brighten up the place. Hope it's worth all the  _ trouble… _ " an old crone vendor said over her shoulder as she watched the gaggle of kids run off, disappearing amongst the busy people in the market. Lu didn't miss the emphasis on "trouble". She wasn't sure how to respond to the old woman, her words caught on the thought of dirty, hungry kids. Lu didn't really pay much mind to the fallout from starting a bar fight. Three Hunter's ended up dead and eight wounded. Frankly, she didn't care. She had assurances from Karga himself that her safety was apparently a priority. Lu took him literally. 

"Oh, it is." Lu tried to not let her voice sound as tired as she was inside. She was still looking after where the kids had run off to. The crone must have taken that as an answer. She continued about her business and left Lu standing in front of an empty stall. The afternoon was beginning to grow stale so the market would be slowing down soon. 

She watched a few starships come and go from Nevarros hilariously so-called "space port". She bet it was Karga who had the audacity to decide that the flat plane of black rock out there should be marked a "space port". Lu was starting to feel like she was missing something, it had felt like she was  _ supposed _ to come to here. She was sure of it. But why? What did Nevarro have that some other skug hole didn't? 

Something creeped into Lu's awareness while she was pondering. It wasn't the same percussive  _ song _ that kept nagging at her, no. That was still there, but she kinda got used to it. This was new. She had a clear view to the arch that signified the entry to the town, the way to the nonexistent pads of the "space port". Her eyes scanned around. Nothing seemed out of place. A re-tuned astromech droid rolled noisily past her, it's gears crunching the lava rock. Jawas wandered by, speaking amongst themselves. Vendors yelled to attract buyers to their goods, chunks of meat sizzled over several open burners, a droid rotating them slowly; a dozen languages in a hundred interactions going on around her…  


  
_ What is that?  _ It wasn't so much a  _ song _ ? Or was it? It was familiar and alien to her all the same. It made no sense. 

And then, just as she was wondering if this was just the beginnings of heavy metal poisoning from breathing the volcanic air. The source of whatever it was, was seemingly forcing herself to be aware of  _ him.  _ He crossed the threshold of the arch into the city from the flat plane of the port. 

He wasn't short, but nor was he abnormally tall. His shoulders were broad, and made more imposing by battered pauldrons. Despite appearing of somewhat average stature, he seemed  _ huge _ to her. Her lack of height not helping, but also huge in the way an ocean is huge. So vast it demanded you to wonder at it. A long tattered cap flapping behind him with every step. His stride alone brooked no nonsense, announcing without saying a word he was dangerous. But it wasn't his stature or stride that made Alura stop in her tracks like a lothcat caught in flood lamps… It was his armour. Specifically, his helmet. Lu had only seen a helmet like that in her childhood, in lessons from her mother. That T that indicated where his biological eyes may be under the cold gleam of what she assumed was beskar… The rest of him looked like he'd been thrown in a trash compactor, however. Dirty and damaged. Mud caked his cloak, vambraces and chestplate looking crushed. The longest blaster rifle she'd ever seen on his back. He looked like every molecule of his being was primed for violence. 

_ Light save me. A Gods damned Mandalorian… _ her inner thoughts ran cold with awe and disbelief. 

But the weirdest of all, next to him was an almost egg shaped… Pram? She couldn't quite make out what was inside. It floated on antigrav repulsors at his side as he matched through the market. Towards Lu. She froze in place and attempted to simply look  _ beyond _ him, like she hadn't been staring openly a second before. Lu  _ needed _ to know what was in that pram, why was lost on her at the moment. She tried not to be aware that she was likely not being very casual or discreet.

It was like her limbs were frozen, her body wouldn't respond. Her mind raced, trying to recollect every lesson she'd been taught while trying to keep her shit together. As The Mandalorian and the pram drew close, the new _song_ she was hearing was breaching more and more into her consciousness. Flooding her awareness till she wanted to scream. It was _ancient_ yet _familiar_ and hard for her to properly _hear_ , it was so overwhelming in her mind. They passed in front of her, and two huge deep brown eyes framed by a tiny green face, tiny nose and round cheeks, with a pair comically large ears peered out at her from the pram. Simultaneously, seemingly elderly and yet certainly infantile.

Everything suddenly fell so silent to Lu, it was jarring. No  _ song _ , no market sounds. She hadn't even had time to ask herself if it was a baby or she was seeing things. Their gazes locked and they both tracked each other, heads turning. In place of perceiving sound, she could  _ feel him _ . His wonder, his confusion… his  _ fear _ . Of the Mando? Or something else? He was  _ reaching _ for her, not physically, but she didn't know why or what to do about it. 

The Mandalorian kept walking, they passed her. The creature cooed and gurgled as it strained to keep looking at her, breaking whatever had just happened. This caught his attention and he came to a pause. The helmet moved, looking down to the pram, then over to where she had been standing.  _ Serenity _ had heeded her in time to reconnect her brain to her body and move, she strode back into the bustle of the market. Barely keeping her shit together. Lu tried to not think about how her brain just felt like it was trying to escape out her ears.

She didn't look back to see if The Mandalorian took notice of her. She tried to gain control of her feelings, control of her breathing. Had she been holding it? It was ragged and stuttering. Her corset felt like it was killing her but she desperately tried to focus on anything but the need for air. She could breathe in her apartment; Lu couldn't hold her breath that long, but it felt like it helped telling herself she could. It wasn't necessarily only  _ fear _ she was feeling, there were a  _ lot _ of feelings coursing through her. But shock was definitely in the mix. In all her days, in all her travels, even under lock and key, she still  _ learned _ about wherever she was. She would watch the throngs of people go about their business whenever she could. A wash of  _ songs _ , familiar and yet unknown. But  _ never _ a Mandalorian. 

Lu somehow, was finding her center.  _ Serenity, heed me.  _ She pleaded. She tried to keep walking without seeming hurried. Heels clacking with determination. 

_ A Light forsaken Mandalorian in a Light forsaken Hunter's den. And now… The little one?... Could it really be?  _ Lu asked herself with some clarity as she approached the entrance to her apartment. Now felt like she found  _ why _ Nevarro leapt off the schedules at her… she was an idiot for wishing to see  _ green _ so badly. She should have known that the Light would give her what she had been asking for… with a catch. 

Light save her, the God's have a sick sense of humour.


	3. The Deal

Lu had never changed and washed her face and hair so fast. She was already redressed and shoving her paints, her contact case, data pad and everything else back in the bag. The big, dark brown eyes on that little green face felt like it was burnt into her brain. She closed her eyes and she'd see him just as if he was tucked in his floating pram right in front of her. His eyes looked as though he _recognised_ her. But she'd never seen a creature like him in her life. She shoved the last of Alura's clothing into the bag, not caring if anything ripped. She'd repair it. 

_I just put this shit out to feel a little more at home. Dank ferrick! Light fucking save me._ Lu internally strung curses like they were a spell that could change what she just saw. Once every scrap of Alura was gone from the room and tucked into the bag, Lu took one last look in the mirror. She breathed deep to steady her nerves. 

Her plainclothes of black canvas and leathers looked unassuming. Her cloak concealed her frame well, it's hood obscured the view of her face. The anonymity it granted was worth the loss of peripherals. Her still-damp white braids wrapped up in her headscarf, connecting it to the base of the high collar of her shirt to keep it all in place. Two small crystalline pins to secure her braids and the scarf all twisted together firmly. Then last, her face covering pulled up so only her eyes were exposed.

The less she looked like Alura Lumenya, the better. She wasn't any one now, just a dark grey and black shadow with a mystery to figure out.

From the bottom of the lock chest at the foot of the bed, she pulled another vibro dagger and strapped it to her hip with the smaller one she used on stage. And there was her pole staff. Made from multiple components, and modular for easy transport. Lu snapped the two long ends to the center hilt together with a magnetic clunk, twisting the couplers to complete the reassembly. The center "hilt" was the closest thing she had to a family heirloom. And while one side of the staff was just a durasteel pole, the other hid a secret. She hadn't used it in years, but it was like riding a speeder; the kind of skill you don't forget. Lu reattached the long leather cross body strap and slung it across her frame. Her bag full of Alura's life and belongings on her shoulder. 

Lu needed to know who that little green creature… _baby?_ was, _how_ and _why_ did she and he both have a sense of familiarity. She needed to know why she could _feel_ him, and not just hear his _song_ . Was it even a _song_ she perceived? Lu had her suspicions, but she couldn't dare entertain them, it would bring up ghosts of her past best left undisturbed. She'd never felt a pull so _strong_ from such a tiny creature, didn't want to think of what the Mando's plans with him was. regardless, there was no way she was going to leave a fucking _baby_ in the hands of a Hunter, mandalorian or not.

_Fuck going back to the cantina too. Fuck the contract. Karga can kiss a quarrens ass for all I care._ Lu grumbled to herself. 

She left the empty room in darkness as she stepped out into the Nevarran streets. Shutting off her ears to the sounds of the city. It hadn't been that long, but the prime star was lowering in the sky, and falling fast. Lu took a steadying breath and forced her feelings aside. She needed to find _serenity_ , inner _silence_ , if she was going to tune into whatever she picked up before. No one paid her any mind as she marched through the black stone streets, like she didn't exist. Before long she was at the arch of the space port entry, stashed her bag behind some fallen brickwork to grab later to make the escape off-world. She scanned the market. 

The Mandalorian had been headed in a direction towards an older, darker part of Nevarro. At least that was what she _felt_ when she replayed what happened in her mind. She found her _silence_ and momentarily closed her eyes. Stretching out with her feelings hoping to catch even a whisper of the _song_ that nearly turned her brain to mush. _There._ She felt a pull… She followed it. The place it led her, Lu had almost stumbled into once before. Accidentally on her way home after her second night on the job. _Something_ made her turn around and leave from the narrow alley. It felt… Wrong, dark, and _cold. Abnormally_ cold. She didn't want to know then what it was. But this time Lu wasn't going to turn back. There was something fucking going _on here._ And she was going to get to the bottom of it. She may be a singer, but that was mostly a cover to make her way around without endangering what few of her people were left; even if they didn't care about her. She had skills that had allowed her to survive alone in the Galaxy this long. And though it had been a while, it was time to put them to use, for a pair of big brown eyes in a tiny green face. 

And it was only when the Imperial Doctor was cowering before her when she found him with an Imperial medical droid, and _the baby._ And the building suddenly shook from an explosion did she realize she may be in over her head.

She had fought through pure terror when she spied the first Stormtroopers after she slipped through an access hatch in the roof. It wasn't how she wanted to learn Empire remnants were sulking about Nevarro. The Imperials here weren't ghosts and that alone brought forth a terror she hadn't felt since she was still a child. But it answered the mystery as to why it felt so cold to her, here. Another invaluable lesson from her mother… _cold_ like this was a warning of a particularly unsettling kind to Lu. This was becoming too much; she made her way through shadows and ventilation systems, avoiding conflict at all cost.

She _listened_ and followed the only thing that didn't _sound_ like Imperial humans, to her. She had slipped into the room from the vents in the ceiling. Dropped down as if she weren't anymore corporeal than a shadow, and took the Imp doctor by surprise, promptly kicked him into the corner, sending him tumbling with a terrified shriek. Then the building shook and Lu stopped dead. _Light save me what the hell was THAT?!_ Lu swallowed shock and took a moment to try and regain composure. She was shaking from terror and feeling so damn _cold_ . _You've gotten this far don't lose it now. Keep it together!_

The baby was at least okay. Asleep, but his _song_ , what she managed to _hear_ through her own panic anyway, was steady. He _sounded_ okay. Physically, her hearing was shrouded by her heart slamming into her chest, hushing the terrified Imperial doctor's frantic speech. She turned her attention up to the black orb of the Imperial medical droid floating high in its repulsors in the room.

And all at once, everything seemed to slow down as the door to the room slid open with a menacing hiss that made her want to jump her skin. 

Lu raised her vibro dagger as the stench of ozone filled her nose and her ears screamed from a blaster bolt shot at the medical droid; sparks flying. The pinpoints of light reflecting like shooting stars on the dangerous dark silver gleam of a beskar helmet.

The Mandalorian immediately turned his blaster on the imp, then to her as her dagger stopped at the edge of the beskar of his helmet, an inch from where his throat would be under all that cloth. He kept the blaster on her. She could almost feel the residual heat on its barrel from the shot that took out the droid. It all happened so fast Lu was acting purely on instinct. 

" _Lay a hand on the baby and it's the last time you have hands. "_ she growled as the imp shrieked that he did no harm to the child trying to crawl even farther into the corner. She paid him no mind, her mismatched eyes fixed on the ominous black T of the helmet. She was gambling on his Mandalorian code of honour to trump his Guild membership. _What is he even doing? Why is he here?_

To her surprise he stopped. He didn't drop the blaster but he made no further motion. He was breathing just as heavy as her… but her ragged breath was because she was internally fighting her emotions. _Serenity. Serenity. Serenity._ She highly doubted he was afraid of _her._ The moment of silence felt like it lasted an eternity. She noted he had new armour. _All fucking beskar…_

"I'm getting him out of here.'' His words were blunt and hard. His voice was modulated through the helmet. Sounding deep and earthy but it rang metallic and _artificial_ in her ears. She realized that damn helmet was going to keep her from _knowing if he's telling the truth._ She made no move. Just stared. Not wanting to trust words alone, especially from a voice that she couldn't naturally hear. Her arm was beginning to ache from holding the vibro dagger to him. Muscles all over her body drawn tight should he make a single move towards her or the bed behind her. She would rather _die_ then let this fucking Hunter or the Imperials have the baby _._

And perhaps he saw it in her eyes, or heard it in her voice when she had spoken. But he dropped the blaster and holstered it. And Lu thanked her Gods, thanked The Maker. And any and all of any potential power that could give aide. She didn't care who was listening. She thanked her mother for the privilege of history lessons. 

After a breath she lowered her vibro dagger and sheathed it. She swallowed the panic that kept threatening to rise into her chest. He didn't shoot. She was so confused. 

"More Stormtroopers are coming. I'm getting him out of here." the Mando repeated. the metallic ring of his modulated voice made her skin crawl. He motioned towards the baby and she stepped to stop him. He didn't stop this time until he closed the distance between them and she had to crane her neck to look at the black void of his vizor. Every step the beskar rang in the pit of Lu's mind. The dark void of the T staring down at her, barely inches from her face. She strained to _hear_ anything from him but her internal chaos made it futile. He was trying to intimidate her, he just leered down at her like he expected her to move. _Serenity._ They stood there like that for the length of a couple breaths, both waiting for the other to make a move. 

"Then you're getting him _and me_ out of here." She made her voice low and cold, deciding she would make that first move. " _Hunter_ 's aren't adequate caretakers." she spat accusingly. Panic, fear, frustration and anger all swarming with a strange bit of wonder and awe and it wasn't allowing much room for her voice to be diplomatic. Even if she knew fighting with him now would be a death sentence, better to sound angry than terrified. She waited. The Mando stayed perfectly still. 

So, Lu then actually did move. Pivoted from facing his chest, making sure to not expose her back and give herself space, she secured the baby in his wrap. Lu scooped him out from under the monitor of the bed and held him to her, half wrapping him in the front panel of her cloak. It would allow her to keep her dagger hand free and she would use her body as a shield while trying to keep the baby cushioned. The Mando remained locked, unmoving even in the slightest; Lu wondered if he could be a damned droid himself under there. She was certainly not about to let _him_ carry the baby. 

" _Fine."_ he eventually bit back, tone low and strained. "Keep up. Don't get in the way." and with a turn he was back out the door. His boots hitting the floor rang into Lu's bones. She'd just made a deal with a strange man who could kill her likely with some degree of ease. Still. Better than Imperials… _Well maybe not, considering I stabbed a Hunter just last night… Light if I get out of this I am_ never _taking a job in a Hunter’s Den ever again._

The Imps were nearly a non issue. He dealt with them like they were nothing. Lu was no stranger to fighting, of all kinds, even if she had stopped rigorously training continuously, but he was like an unstoppable Imperial beating machine. Rumour had been Empire remnants were down to only the dregs and the most loyal monsters skulking about the Outer Rim. But even most run of the mill Stormtroopers could give a Hunter a challenge if they had a number advantage. However, in the tight quarters of this imperial holdout, their numbers meant for bantha shit. He took bolts deliberately and deflected them off the beskar to close the gaps. When they got within melee, they were done. He moved not like he was armed with a weapon, but that _he was the weapon_. Lu just tried keeping her focus on the baby, and shadowing the walking fortress of a man. He was surprisingly fast for wearing such heavy gear. But there weren't many people faster than her, so staying close while not being in the way was not terribly difficult. She stayed quick and quiet, a black leathered shadow to his beskard form. 

There was a catch when she thought they might be fucked. A group of Imps caught them in a more open room and surrounded them. Lu still just followed his lead, putting her dagger on the floor as he lowered to put his blaster down; the baby tucked still in the crook of her other arm. He spoke to the troopers. Lu's throat felt like it was drier than Tattooine; she would have no voice, so stayed silent. And then it happened. Whistles and flashes of light erupted from his vambrace. And one by one the Stormtroopers fell. _Serenity. Serenity. Serenity… Light keep it together_ . _What have I gotten myself into?_

It took her a second to register the Mando stood and was already striding off towards the next doorway. The baby was awake now, but still seemed so tired. She kept peering down at him. Keeping the Mandalorians back in front of her. He looked back often to make sure she was still there. Then stopped in surprise when she took out a trooper that tried to wedge himself between them. Her vibrodagger found its mark, the sweet spot under the helmet just at the jaw. His comm gurgling in terror as he hit the floor at the mando's feet. She may not be able to see his face but his body language said he was taken by surprise. She shrugged through ragged exhausted breaths, not knowing what the hell he was standing around for. The Mandalorian nodded at her silently before they continued out of the imperial base. _Today's just full of surprises… I'm so tired of surprises..._

Now Lu found herself regretting thinking they were fucked in the imperial hideout. Because they were right and truly fucked, now. _The God's are cruel…_ Hunters. Every Light forsaken Hunter on Nevarro was surrounding them. On the roofs overhead of the market, in the dark recesses of the streets. _Serenity! SERENITY… Light please. Don't let them discover it's me…_

Serenity had long fled Nevarro, Lu came to the crushing conclusion upon seeing Greef Karga himself in between them and the archway to the space port. They had made it to the market as Lu was wondering if the Mando even had a plan. It felt like he was making this up as he went along. Her heart sank to the pit of her stomach… _Keep it together. Keep it together._ It was difficult to keep faith when the twists just kept coming. 

Her eyes were fixated on Karga. If he recognized her… No. Lu wouldn't even let that idea out in the universe. She stopped herself before she finished. She felt the baby squirm in her arm, he was fighting sleep. _She_ would have been too if she wasn't running in pure adrenaline. She dared not look down at him though… and then, that percussive _song_ she'd been hearing all week was becoming louder? It suddenly made its way to the front of her mind. _No. Not now!_ She tried to ignore it. 

She snapped back to reality when the Mando grabbed her arm and walked her over to a speeder sled headed by a re-tuned astromech droid. Her feet felt frozen to the black volcanic ground. His grip wasn't rough, but firm. He had to push her to move. Lu's legs threatened to buckle under her. The strange percussive _song_ refusing to be ignored. If she wasn't so distracted the Mando would be missing a hand for touching her. 

"You put the baby down on the sled, leave your associate, and we'll talk about our options, Mando." Karga's thespian notes ripped into her consciousness. And a deep dark dread filled her. She stopped breathing. This was a scenario that was _too familiar_ to Lu. Her mind screaming at her body to run, to do anything. But she was locked, fear was all she knew.

_I'm so fucked. He's going to hand the baby over to save his own skin. Fucking Hunter's don't give a fuck about anything but their Light forsaken credits. Even if they don't know it's me yet, they will soon… What the fuck is even going on?!_

The only warning The Mandalorian gave her, was the tightening of his grip on her arm; and even then she was too slow to fully notice. With a single motion, he grabbed her, pulled her in; the impact against the cold metal of his chest plate forced air back in her lungs. And then up was down, down was up. For a split second, gravity didn't exist. And then Lu hit the bed of the speeder on her back. _Pain_ blazed through her as her staff dug in down her back. Her newly found breath knocked out; _The baby! Don't drop the baby! Don't let him go._ She internally screamed at herself. Her head was pounding. She clutched the little bundle of canvas to her chest. Blaster fire was screaming overhead. Sparks flying as it hit her surroundings. Ozone filled her lungs when she finally remembered how to inhale. Her entire body felt like it was going to give out. _Chaos_ . It took everything she had to not slam her eyes shut and try to pretend she was anywhere but here. _What is he DOING?_

The Mandalorian was half over her, using his body as a shield. She wasn't sure she ever saw some one so accurate with a blaster before. Hunters were dropping, she heard their bodies smack the rock. The Mando screamed at the droid to go. His voice dripped malice and the metallic rasp of the modulator made it sound menacing; full of… _hate?_ The sled lurched. 

They didn't get far before a blaster bolt took out the droid and they came to another stop. _Light. Please. Please. Please. Let me get the baby out of here and I'll never ask for anything again._ She prayed. And then the Mandalorian shifted, the menacingly long rifle from his back was now in his hands. It fired a bolt, its sound was unfamiliar. Angry roars from Hunter's rang like an orchestra of violent intent. 

And the heaviest silence Lu had _ever_ felt in her life fell across the market. He fired again. And again. Explosions of ash and smoke where once biological beings stood. Dread washed over the market like a wave threatening to wipe the place out. _It's a fucking disintegrator… Can this get any worse?_ A weapon meant for droids but found a special _property_ when used against biologicals.

Chaos returned. The Mando looked to the baby in her arms in between shots. The baby watched the Mandalorian. Lu was struggling to breath. Her back was screaming at her to get off her staff but there was no room to move with the Mando partially on top of her. Was a rib broken? Maybe. Nothing made sense. Lu held onto the pain to try and keep her consciousness. She couldn't risk passing out. The Mando was staring at the baby, in a haze she reached out with her feelings to try and center; to gauge what was going on that she couldn't _see_ with her eyes. Anything to desperately figure out what was going on. What to do. She amazingly found something… _The baby_ isn't afraid _of him_. 

Without warning, the strange percussive _song_ exploded into the front of her awareness, and she nearly did pass out. Slammed into her so hard she momentarily lost her focus on the baby. It flooded her senses the overwhelming rush of the _song_ , and nothing else existed. She shut her eyes and couldn't help but whimper, clutching the baby like he could ground her to reality. Percussion felt like it was ripping through the very fabric of her being, rattling her bones like they were ancient drums. It was like she was _drowning_ in it. _Fear_ washed over her. _No! No! Not now! No. Hold on. Hold on. You have to keep it together for the baby. You can't lose it now. Not NOW!_ It drowned out everything, the angry Hunter's the blaster fire, the roars. Only the _song_ existed. 

It stopped just as fast as it came on, and Lu inhaled. The dense volcanic air felt like the best thing she'd ever known. And the darkening Nevarran sky erupted with Mandalorians. Dozens of them. _That's it. You've lost it, Lu. You're hallucinating._ Beskar forms descending from the sky like out of a story. 

But then The Mando shouted to one, " _We'll have to move the Covert!"_ she wasn't hallucinating?

_"This is the Way."_ an immense, blue armoured Mando replied to the one she found herself entangled with. " _Go."_

"This is the Way." He shouted back, evacuating the sled; and only when he gestured for her and reached out his hand did Lu manage to find the will to move her body. She took his hand and let him help her out of the sled, onto her feet. Lu was so tired… desperate for this to be over. 

" _Move._ " His helmet ordered with a metallic pang. Lu moved, her entire being protesting. He ran. She ran after him, the baby making uncomfortable gurgles. Past the arch she detoured to grab her bag she stashed earlier. Lu surprised herself by having the clarity to remember it.

" _Dank Ferrick I said MOVE"_ the Mando shouted at her delay. Lu couldn't tell if he was angry through the metallic ring of his modulated voice. She decided she didn't care. This bag was filled with everything she'd survived on her own with so far. She wasn't about to leave it behind. _Light forsake this metallic asshole._ There she went breaking her promise to the God's to never ask for anything again… though they probably expected that from her by now. 

They ran for what she was praying was a starship, with her luck today the Mando is likely to only have a speeder. Imps and a hoard of Hunter's were already not what she had in her schedule today and she didn't feel like sticking around for the fallout; the only option was getting off Nevarro. Lu dared a glance back and she could not believe her eyes… _Gods be good. There's so many._ Never did Lu ever think she'd see one, let alone an entire enclave of them… Jetpacks and blaster fire roared into the dark overcast Nevarran sky as if they summoned the Gods of War. The gravity of a sudden realization felt so _immense_ in her heart that it shook her to her very soul…

_Mandalore survives._

Up the back ramp, the ring of beskar breaking through her strangely timed surge of awe. The interior of the ship was cold and grey; impersonable. You could tell a lot by a person's ship. _They match._ Lu thought bitterly as she tried to simultaneously ignore how much pain she was in, while needing to focus on it to keep herself going; her adrenaline was waning now, exhaustion taking grip on her. Bag and baby both felt like they weighed as much as a Rancor. Her lungs screamed for oxygen and her heart was in her ears. Was the Mando behind her? Her brain was slow to register Greef Karga's voice ringing _inside_ the ship. 

Lu was on the last vestiges of her strength, her breath ragged and heavy. She couldn't get control of it. _I cant keep doing this… does karga know it's me? Please don't let him realise who I am._ The Mandalorian turned and faced him. Lu stood in place like stone. Her knees locked. She dared not try and move, the baby squirming up towards her shoulder. Her back was a sea of pain. The baby wanted to _see_ the Mando. Keep him in sight? She must be wrong. She couldn't tell left from right, let alone sort out the tangle of emotions inside her to be able to. The ship felt like it was spinning but she knew it wasn't. Her throat felt raw even though she hadn't said a word since… _Since you threatened to cut off the Mando's hands. You idiot._

"One last chance to surrender, Mando." Karga still managed to be insufferable dramatic even when ambushing a humanoid shaped wall of beskar that could disintegrate him. _So God's damned extra…_ the two men were locked in a stand off. Karga had his blaster already out, the Mando empty handed. Lu looked at the baby, and he looked up at her. Deep brown eyes, nearly black staring into her own green and blue. _Serenity…_

And just as Lu thought she was going to find it, it was broken by a beskar arm shoving her back as he covered her from Karga's aim. Her back and shoulders screamed at the impact even though it had been a feather compared to when he tossed her into the sled. She was definitely at least bruised where her staff had impacted; jury was still out on that broken rib… the Mando's amour rang like a dirge in her senses. His arm shot out and with a hiss a sinister freezing vapour erupted into the ship. He'd hit a switch with a wire shot from his vambrace. The Mandalorian then open fired a single shot to Karga's three, the misty vapour flashing red as if straight from her nightmares. Lu's legs were shaking from the strain of holding herself upright. Something was tickling her nose, her mouth tasted metallic… She was stuck between the metal of the ship and the metal covered man who was so close she could smell the leathers under the beskar. Even through the cloud of ozone and vapour. Could hear his breath coming through his helmet, laboured and metallic. Her entire awareness was full of him… 

The Mandalorian had shot Greef Karga. She hadn't cared much for the man, but he _had_ shot his own men in her defense… The old man's body had fallen out the back of the ship. Lu didn't have it in her to reach out for his _song_. The Mandalorian was keen to kill her next, probably. She was no longer useful, not that she had particularly been that useful in the first place. 

The baby wiggled and struggled from his wrap, gurgling. She couldn't keep hold of him, her strength giving out completely. _Light save me… Don't let him hurt the baby._ She still didn't know what was going on. The baby hadn't been afraid, but the Mando had brought him to those damn imps in the first place… _Fucking Hunter's only care about their credits._

She unceremoniously crumpled in a heap of leather and canvas. Somehow she made sure to fall on her side so she didn't land on the baby. The last thing she felt was the cold floor of the ship, and him being taken from her. Beskar ringing. Lu's world went black and she faded into unconsciousness. 

An unknown amount of time passed to her. She felt like her spirit and body were detached. Lu had awareness of herself but everything was black. Inky blackness as far as she could see… a dream? A vision?

_Do I even have eyes?_

_"You will not need them."_ A man's voice? 

_Who's there? I can't see…_ Lu had no idea where her voice was coming from. Where his voice was coming from. Everywhere and nowhere at the same time. 

_"Your eyes will deceive you. Trust your feelings. You'll find the answer within you."_

_Answer? I don't have an answer to anything. I'm no one._ She was probably dead on the floor of a bounty hunters ship, anyway. 

_"You are not dead. But, No one? You_ cannot be _no one. Just as your mother, You have starfire in your blood."_ She hadn't heard those words in a very long time. 

_How-How do you know my mother?_ Lu missed her. Terribly. Everything got so much worse after she died. 

_"I knew her. I knew your grandmother. And I have known you all your life. We are bound, connected to one another."_ She was at a loss. There was no _lie_ in the words. But she'd never heard this voice before. She didn't understand how they were connected, but it was _true,_ regardless. 

" _The little one reminded you of what you locked away…_ _the part of you that connects you to her. And to me."_

_It had to be done. It was what was best... I had to make the choice. There's too few of us, now… even before the Empire came…_ Lu desperately didn't want to think about this. She didn't want to relive the memories so dangerously close to the surface. But, she still needed to put the mystery to rest. _Do… Do You know what the child is?_

_"Of course. You know what he is, too."_ This only served to fill her with dread. She had been too afraid to let herself accept that she knew the moment her eyes locked with those big brown orbs...

_"You let yourself be guided by fear, young one...."_ the warm voice sighed, but tinged with sadness. It was, however, the truth. Fear, she was not proud to admit, had far too often been a driving force in her life. A constant disappointment to her peoples legacy. _"For what it's worth, I am sorry. I wish it could have been different for you, for your mother… I failed you."_ there was an ache in the tone she didn't understand. 

_Failed? At what?_

_"To bring balance. Events long before you were born set into motion events that could not be changed… Little Luna…"_ The way the voice said that name made her feel like a little girl again. Her mother called her that when they'd sit together and she would braid Lu's hair.. The voice rang into the depths of her heart wrapping her in a sense of being… loved. _"... We cannot change the past. Your mother taught you everything. To find the answers, you must look back."_

_Look back?_

_"You are going to wake up soon. Remember, trust your feelings. Be mindful of the living Force, it will guide you. It already has… " The Force? I can't-- that's not how… Who ARE YOU?_

  
_"Trust_ The Song _, Enarra's daughter. Remember who you are."_ _  
_


	4. The Hunter's Interlude

"Let's see…" Din turned his T visor to the navcom, flipping through the ship's data on this system. "Sorgan…Looks like there's no star port, no industrial centers, no population density. Real backwater skug hole. Which means it's perfect for us." The kid cooed and looked up at him from his lap. "You ready to stretch your legs and lay low for a couple months, ya little womprat?" He looked down at the kid who gurgled in the positive. "Nobody's gonna find us here." The kid made another affirming noise. But before they went into atmosphere, Din supposed he should go check on the surprise passenger still down in the hold. 

At first Din hadn't even been sure  _ what _ she was, back at the imperial holdout. Just a short, cloaked figure with a dagger between him and the kid. The droid had to go, the Imp was clearly already terrified so wasn't worth the shot; and he would've shot her had she not obviously been non-Imperial. Her cloak of black canvas obscured her form and had no identifying marks. She spoke quickly and so menacingly he was forced to stop and consider her. Like she was  _ daring _ him to pull the trigger, but with enough confidence that he was certain he would not have walked away from a fight there unscathed, it didn't seem to matter to her that a blaster was pointed at her face. Her eyes narrow, wary slits beneath her dark blonde brows, dual coloured threats; her arm quaking as she held the dagger up to him. Her voice was what gave her away. It didn't shake when she threatened to cut his hand off, to her credit. But she made it clear she was ready to  _ die _ fighting for the kid. That accounted for something, he had been impressed. 

Now, he found himself wondering who she was; he had a hunch. Karga had offered a private show at the Twi'lek healing baths with this singer he'd conned the cantina owner into contracting. Didnt seem likely to him, he'd spotted the singer in the market. Some things didn't match. But at the same time he didn't doubt a woman who looked like…  _ that  _ could be capable of the speed and aggression she displayed. The Galaxy was full of all kinds of surprises. 

The kid wanted off his knee. His little body squirming in its brown canvas jumpsuit to get down returned Din to the present. Must be a survival function, to be so cute that strangers risk death for him. The irony of that was not lost on the Mandalorian. The kid went right for the back of the cockpit the moment he was placed on the floor. Din barely had time to stand up before he was crossing the airlock door to the ladder down to the cargo hold. 

" _ Maker _ " Din grumbled, the child was a handful when he wanted something. "You can't go down there by yourself." he picked the child up and tucked him in the crook of his arm. He paused to listen, staring down into the hold. No noise. Then descended down the rungs, sitting the kid down at the edge of the bunk. Big dark eyes staring down at her still form questioningly, his big green ears drooped. Din stopped and considered her for a moment, not wanting to startle her; unsure of how to proceed to wake her.

Her collapse back on Nevarro had been so sudden it surprised him. She'd been so quiet and he too focussed on getting them safely out of there, especially when Karga got the drop on them  _ inside his ship _ ; shooting Karga had been something he'd never wanted to resort to. But the kid came before his allegiance to the Guild. The Creed demanded it.

And perhaps that's why after he took the kid from her he felt the need to thank her in a small way; He took her bag and staff off her body, finding her bag full of pliable things by touch, some hard box shapes and other odd things but mostly clothes, he figured. He tucked the bag under her head for comfort, lifting her ever so gently. He considered a moment removing her face covering, she wasn't Mandalorian, but she had  _ acted _ in a manner that aligned with The Creed. So he decided he would assess her for anything serious without resorting to that; she may have her reasons for hiding her face.

He had to admit he had been apprehensive of the contact, but he took a glove off and slipped two fingers beneath the cuff of her own glove and felt for her pulse on the inside of her wrist. She was short of stature, and her wrist so dainty his deeper skinned fingers looked huge. Clad head to toe, black headscarf covering whatever she had for hair, black face wrap; black fading to grey cloak, solid black form beneath, black boots. The only skin visible was her forehead, eyes and a bit of the bridge of her nose; dark blonde brows and eyelashes. Everything about her he found delicate and unassuming. She seemed small now, like this; awake she'd been fearless-No, that wasn't right. She'd seemed fearless at first glance, but she'd actually been scared shitless. Nonetheless, she didn't balk. She kept  _ leaning in _ where an average person would have spooked and turned tail. 

Her skin was soft,  _ so  _ soft, and warm. And he'd been immediately thankful that her pulse was steady. Din wasn't proud to admit that he had stayed like that for a time, knelt before her, holding her hand in one of his. The pads of his bare fingertips of the other sensing the steady rhythm of her heart. To be absolutely sure she wasn't in immediate danger, but also because it had been too long since he'd touched another person skin to skin.  _ Maker forgive me…  _ he had internally swore. 

Checking a pulse via the wrist would be benign to any other person. To Din, it had felt immensely  _ intimate _ in the low, warm ambient lights of the cargo hold, listening to her breathe; his body reacted in a way he wasn't wholly prepared for. Something  _ stirred _ in him. Deep and  _ primal _ . In a rush of frustration with himself he had stood. Grabbed the kid whom he had completely forgotten had been there the whole time, returned to the cockpit to ride the rest of the way. Watching Hyperspace in silence, desperately trying to ignore how she had felt underneath him. Wondering miserably what he did for the Maker to test him.

The Way of the Manda'lor was a life shrouded in leather and durasteel and beskar. The explicit rule was the helmet couldn't come off; The rest was fair game, back when he took The Creed less seriously. He'd known his share of bed partners in his younger days, though none had known his face. Until the last one he had been with, he had intended to for her to be the one that did. She had rebuked him as they grew into different people. The Maker had seen him lucky enough that she showed him who she was before he took the helmet off. The realization had left him wounded deeper than he had cared to accept, a strange kind of betrayal. Din decided then she _would still_ _be_ the last. Strict adherence to The Creed was better than going through that again. It had been years since they parted ways, Din had not touched or been touched by another since. It left an ache deep in his chest that he had almost forgotten after all this time… 

Din grew frustrated at himself again, now, for reliving that moment in the hold at length instead of waking the dark cloaked woman immediately. She hadn't moved since he left her there, figuring she would feel better waking up without a stranger being around. But they were about to land and he didn't need her surprising him during it. 

He looked back at the child for a moment, the kid still watching her sleeping form on the floor below them. With a sigh, Din carefully stepped over, and knelt down in front of her again. He could hear her slow steady breathing through her face covering. Eyes still shut. He reached a leather clad hand toward her shoulder, only intending to try and get her awake. And for a  _ third _ time, she managed to impress him. 

She lurched up catching him off guard, but her movement laboured, giving him the grace needed to lean back away as she swung out at him. Her vibrodagger whined through the air and found his chest plate. She groaned as the impact caused her to drop it, flinching as the beskar screeched, dagger clattering to the floor. He took the opening and grabbed her by her wrists, pushed her down on her back with ease. She groaned and sounded like she sucked air though her teeth when she hit the ground. The dagger buzzing away just out of her reach. She was weaker than he was expecting but was still fighting against him, hands at the sides of her head. Wriggling fingers still stretching for the dagger. 

"Easy! Easy…" he tried to keep his voice calm, attempting to de-escalate. "Calm do--" her lower body twisting cut him off. With a grunt she kneed him square in the side, missing the beskar and hitting ribs. If she had been at full strength and caught him like that, she may have broken one or two, if he went by her speed on Nevarro. He felt it but it but he otherwise didn't move. She sounded like she was struggling to breathe behind her face covering; Din was certain she was in pain. 

" _ Stop!"  _ He barked, putting more of his weight on her wrists, leaning in. He was half aware this reduced the space between them. To her credit, she did stop, albeit begrudgingly. She was staring daggers up at him as sharp as the one she dropped.

"W-where- _ "  _ she coughed "- _ baby? _ " managing to get out between breaths, voice rough, barely above a whisper. Her chest heaving from the strain.

"He's here. Safe." He answered, she relaxed, but didn't take her gaze off him. Even as relief flooded her eyes. After a breath Din became aware he was  _ hovering _ over her and let her wrists go, keeping his hands up and open. He slowly shifted back from her, giving her space. He raised his shoulders and lowered his head a little. Trying to communicate he didn't want to fight; trying to not make it obvious that he had been momentarily  _ very  _ aware of her body underneath his. And as if on cue, the kid squealed happily, reaching his arms out to her from the edge of the inset bunk. A welcome distraction. 

She rolled onto her side, and craned her neck, looking up at the kid. He stuck out a chubby three fingered hand and hesitantly waved at her. A coughing fit suddenly took her and she met the floor again, ripping her face covering down with a gloved hand.

Her face was a blaze of pale skin in a mass of black and grey; some dark blonde hair falling out of her headwrap, some stuck to her forehead. Her jaw was delicate, but had a stubborn set to it. Half dry blood smeared across her lips and chin. It crusted under her narrow nose; had a slight angle to the right like it'd been broken once. High cheekbones and full, high angled brows to match. Wide lips that looked like they were made for smiling. Not bloodied grimaces. Din marked her as human, though perhaps of mixed lineage; though maybe she was from the Hapes system. The humans there have long been considered some of the most beautiful in the Galaxy with features that set them apart from most humans. But he didn't know what defined Hapans other than "beautiful". 

He rose up from his position, plucked the knife buzzing against the durasteel floor and shut it off to spare the sound. Grabbed a canteen of water, a scrap of clean cloth from a small recess in the privy. Helping the kid down from the edge of the bunk with his other hand, the little brown canvas sack wriggling as his tiny legs tried to navigate the drop to the floor. The cloaked woman managed to push herself up, sitting with her back against the hidden weapons lockers. Features twisted in pain, and it was obvious she was struggling to not make noise; Din was absolutely certain she was injured beyond just that bloody nose. He knelt again holding out the canteen, the now still dagger, and cloth to her. Silently hoping the gesture of plainly and openly giving her her blade back would be an avenue to trust.

It took the kid walking up to her knee and looking at her for her to take them. She drank like she'd never had water, dagger forgotten. Some spilled down her chin, washing blood away, she kept drinking anyway, uncaring. She stopped for a moment to wipe her face, brown and red smears mostly gone. Her chin and what little he could see of her neck streaked red and white. She quickly returned to finish the canteen, when empty she let it fall to the floor. Breathing deep, but no longer ragged. The kid watched her. She watched Din. Silence filled the ship like it was made of the air itself. He had a lot of questions.  _ Does she know what the kid can do?  _

"You injured?" he asked instead. Better to not ask anything that might rouse any kind of suspicions. Recieved dead air as a response. And then kid put his little hand on the back of her black leathered one and they exchanged a look. He wondered if there was something he was missing. 

"... Had worse." Her tone guarded and dry. Voice soft as she sheathed the dagger back at her hip somewhere beneath her cloak. It was obvious she didn't trust him. From the first moment she's kept him in her sights, never exposed her back. If she  _ was _ the singer, Karga maybe missed a chance on one hell of an enforcer instead. He still wasn't sure. It would make a kind of sense. But the woman in the market was taller, he thought; her nose straighter? He didn't get that good of a look at her face in the market before she walked off. All in all it didn't totally add up to Din. But if she wasn't, then  _ who was she?  _

Somehow she'd gotten to the kid before him, past all those Imps; she stabbed that Stormtrooper on the way out; where she had impressed him for the second time. He pushed away the nagging questions he had, unsure of what to say now.

"Why'd you take him to the Imps?" her voice made it clear that she wasn't happy about that, at all. Her voice cut the heavy silence like the knife she just hid. It did not feel great then, and weirdly she was making it worse now. Wrestling between being a Hunter or following The Creed; Returning the beskar to The Tribe and fashioning new armour had won out, but only temporarily. He couldn't get those big eyes out of his head.  _ Just a baby…  _ The Creed dictated Din couldn't justifiably leave him without care. 

"The payment for him replaced my armour-" he carefully started. Trying to mask the shame he felt from having done it, truly. He was about to continue to explain the change of his mind, but she cut him off. 

" _ Figures. _ " blue and green orbs of pure malice matched her tone; raised her chin and looked down her nose at him. Even sitting, she squared her shoulders to him, defiant. She kept her gaze locked on him even as the kid waddled around on her cloak, and up into her lap. 

"-But I couldn't leave him." Din finished over her. She was definitely not a fan of Hunters, making her not a fan of him. 

_ Aren't adequate caretakers, she'd said.  _ He tried to remember that at least meant she wanted the kid safe, even if he sorely felt like it wasn't totally untrue. Reminding him that he himself had never actually been in charge of a child and has been, effectively, flying blind. For whatever her reason; For at least that much, he knew she was no harm to the kid.

"Liar." her tone was so  _ accusing _ . The single word as hot as a blaster bolt. He took a second, investigating the durasteel floor instead of her face, trying to formulate what to say. He sighed and shook his head, feelings of exasperated and frustration building. 

"The imps had the beskar. It belongs with the Tribe and my previous armour had been destroyed. I had to make the trade. But that… doesn't mean I was okay with it. I went back-to get the kid." Din clumsily clarified. It was uncomfortable to admit that out loud. And to a stranger, no less. He was very conscious that his voice was laden with his confliction, but his efforts to sound otherwise were futile. Din studied her carefully, thankful that she couldn’t see his face. He couldn't help but watch hers. Another heavy silence. The kid made a confused noise, looking back and forth between them from her lap. She stared at Din openly, as if she was trying to see through him. Her posture became less stiff and anger and confusion being replaced more with a guarded curiosity.

"Take that thing off your head to say that. And I might believe you." She demanded, her tone low but not as harsh. It was like she was trying to convince herself she could trust him. She was looking for reasons to. Din nearly flinched at the request though. He tried to motion vaguely, trying his best to express being earnest even though he was growing tired of her suspicions. He knew the truth would not be helpful, but he spoke it regardless. 

"I can't." the words were heavy in his mouth under the beskar. "It's against The Creed." She was still staring daggers, but confusion was there at his admission. And perhaps curiosity. It was like it didn't compute to her. He wasn't unused to that, but she genuinely looked like she expected something else. The kid patted her hand and cooed reassuringly. She turned her attention to him again. She was still visibly exhausted, dark circles under her eyes. 

"Your name?" She asked, her tone was softening, but still reserved. Like she wasn't expecting to approve of anything he could say. She kept her gaze on the child.

"Just Mando, is fine." Din replied. This wasn't probably going to go great either. He was starting to find his nerves grated, patience wearing thin. 

"Ah." snark dripped from the single word. But after she took a breath, she offered her own, looking to him again. "I'm Alura.  _ Just  _ Lu, is fine."

He nodded stiffly in response, a slight surprise his guess had been right after all. She  _ was  _ the singer Karga had mentioned when he offered her company along with the trip to the Twi'lek baths. His surprise was not as though he didn't believe a woman who looked like that could be capable of what she displayed, it was that she  _ did  _ look like that  _ and _ was versed in combat arts to a degree. This sent small familiar ripples through him again; reminded of how her skin felt under his fingers. He shut those away before they got out of control.

Her being the singer also explained why she was scared shitless. Karga mentioned she'd stabbed a Hunter the night before for grabbing her which caused quite the bar fight.

But at least now he had her name, and she did seem to trust him enough that she wouldn't try and assassinate him during landing. If only by a hair. So it was a small degree of progress. When the baby made an unsure sound, she patted him on the head gently; Din could have sworn she almost looked sad as her green and blue eyes focussed on him.

"I'm taking the ship down. Planet called Sorgan. Agricultural. Quiet." He tried to change the subject. Nevarro was a complication he didn't want to think about. He was becoming tired himself, wanting the solitude of the cockpit. It wasn't that he was uncomfortable around others, necessarily. But he wasn't used to others in his ship, nevermind a woman. A woman he had caught a glimpse of in the market, golden dress shimmering as she walked away in the crowd. Long bright blonde waves bouncing with each step. Everything about her had been bright and almost looked as if she glimmered. His mind gave him the image of his bare hand touching her wrist, soft and adorned with gold and crystals. He shouldn't be thinking about that. He shouldn't be thinking of the skin beneath the cloth and leather she wore now. She looked to him in acknowledgement but stayed silent. He thanked the Maker for the beskar hiding his face that he knew would have given him away. 

"You'll find a medpack in the privy for your injuries, and more water. Use them to clean up. Won't take long to land." He offered trying to stay focussed. Lowered his hand to her, a silent offer to help her up. She didn't take it, instead choosing to force herself up to stand. Silently wincing, still holding onto the kid.

"Im fine." her tone was still stiff; but didn't sound like she wanted to strangle him any more at the least. The kid held his arms out to him and gurgled. She looked down at him questioningly for a moment, and he looked back at her before reaching out for Din to take him again. Another strange sort of unseen exchange between them, maybe? Arvala-7 and the mudhorn introduced him to something he couldn't explain and maybe this cantina singer had information he didn't. 

"Here.” She said begrudgingly, taking him aback. “He's not heavy. But it's-not comfortable to hold him." her voice was strained, she held the kid out to him. He couldn't help but be aware of how close the action had to bring them again. But he was aware she wanted her space; and he had to admit he desperately needed his.

It was obvious she chose her words carefully, but he found his irritation with her suspicion of him fading. He knew how bad the galaxy could be; if their positions had been reversed he'd be the same. He kept these thoughts to himself and instead nodded to acknowledge her. Turning and going back up the ladder to the cockpit, the kid tucked in the crook of his arm. He couldn't risk saying anything more, afraid his voice would reveal things he should very much keep to himself. 

  
Din sat in his pilot's seat and plunked the kid in the back nav seat. Silently refusing to acknowledge the nagging thoughts of her skin as he set in to make their landing.    



	5. The Ally

After cleaning her face and neck from the nosebleed, tidying her head wrap to keep her hair concealed, and taking full advantage of the med kit for her pain, Lu found herself taking in her surroundings fully. She was still in a strange kind of shock… she just had a full damn weird strained conversation? Could she call that a conversation?... With  _ A God's damned Mandalorian _ who was unfortunately also a  _ Bounty Hunter. _

Lu really wanted to just forget she tried to cut his throat and had been waiting there after his boots startled her awake. Not to mention she wanted to just forget the strange vision she'd had before she had been woken up, too. She'd had visions before, but none like that. That was like some spirit came to haunt her from the cosmos… 

She moved around, trying to loosen her cramped muscles and ease the remnants of the pain in her back. She was definitely bruised, the flesh of her back and shoulders tender under her fingers; she was definitely black and blue back there. Once the pain relief wore off she'd be feeling it for certain; The Mandalorian had neglected to restock bacta infusion in his kit, but she would take the pain relief regardless. She was likely going to have limited motion for a few days, but nothing broken, she thanked the Gods for that.  _ If given the chance, don't forget to give him shit for the damage… _ she thought ruefully. 

At first glance the interior of the ship had seemed impersonable, but the more she looked there were small details that it was well lived in. Scratches, slight discolouration at touch points. It was still very much utility over comfort, but that made sense for a man who spent his time chasing bounties she supposed. She felt the shift to natural gravity as they touched down.

Mando had said Sorgan was  _ agricultural.  _ And agriculture typically meant plant life, meant  _ green _ . While on one hand she knew better than to get too hopeful, on the other it'd been years since she'd seen a tree with her own eyes. Lu could hear Mando saying something to the little one in the cockpit above before his steps made way towards the ladder. She had already finished double checking her pack, and her staff was already strapped on her back. The Mandalorian lowered down into the hold, acknowledging her with a stiff nod. The ringing of his beskar and his boots on the floor of the ship ringing in her mind. 

"There's a small outpost not far from here. Should have a tavern and lodgings." Mando's modulated voice rang out from his helmet, strictly business. He walked past her and pressed the switch for the side door of the ship. "The kid is up in the cockpit. I'll be back before long." Wait… was he just going to leave? She was already primed to go wherever, expecting the Mandalorian to send her on her way, the kid and her both off Nevarro. He was going to just go and expected the kid to be okay by himself? Or did he expect her to stay and play babysitter? She was more than happy to be the babysitter, she wasn't 100% sold on what his deal with the kid was, still. But some communication about his intent would go a long way. Lu noted he seemed tense, though, like he wanted to get out of the ship ASAP. 

"Hold up. You realise you can't just leave a baby by itself, right?" She couldn't help but sound slightly incredulous. Multiple questions she had blurted out as the one. 

The door of the ship opened and he probably gave an answer, but she suddenly couldn't care. She couldn't have heard him even if she wanted to. Lu found herself immediately transfixed by what she saw beyond the threshold of the grey durasteel body of his ship. Her heart could not believe what her dual coloured eyes were seeing.

_ Grass _ .  _ Trees… Life.  _ Lu's feet were already carrying her down the ramp,  _ The Song _ so strong here compared to Nevarro, and especially Port Tooga, she could cry. It was a cacophony of a thousand thousand  _ songs _ intertwined. She hadn't realised how  _ hollow _ she had felt for so long with its presence feeling muted and far away. Lu took her gloves off her hands, tucking them half into her pants pocket beneath her cloak as she knelt. Laid her bare palms against the grass, shutting her eyes as tears threatened to well up, so many emotions coursing through her. The earth felt like it welcomed her touch, and she was filled with a calmness that soothed the emotional wrinkles. It was as if the grass itself was telling her that it was okay now. She breathed deep and felt the clean temperate air fill her lungs.  _ Serenity…  _ Lu heeded. And amazingly,  _ Serenity  _ answered her. 

"Both of you are coming then?" the artificial ring of Mando's voice broke through to her, sounding immensely annoyed. She opened her eyes and looked next to her to find the child staring at her knowingly, gurgling reassuringly; brown and beskar boots entered her vision beyond the little green face.

"He-uh… Didn't stay in the cockpit like I asked him to." Mando offered. Sounding both irritated and yet surprised the kid didn't listen, which Lu found so hilarious a cackle escaped before she could stop herself. He stood there, T vizor looking down at her, body language rigid as if she'd struck him. Though he was probably confused as hell, considering.

But the irony of this man so obviously proficient in survival, a literal murder machine, being seemingly so unprepared for minding a  _ child _ was actually hysterical. 

"Well… " she started in between breaths as her laughter subsided, "...kids aren't known for doing as they're asked, no. Besides, I never agreed to babysit." Lu chose to keep her tone light if a little guarded, the warm daylight felt too good to ruin by being needlessly prickly. She stood up, brushing the grass off her knee; slipped her gloves back on lest he caught an unadorned nail glittering. The Mando just stood there quietly studying her. Was he embarrassed?  _ Well if it teaches a lesson… _ eventually He sighed audibly and shook his head. Placing his leathered hands on his hips. He inclined his helmet downward, contemplating the grass; Lu bet he was silently questioning what he'd gotten himself into.  _ Welcome to the club. _ The kid made a questioning noise and looked between them. She raised a questioning eyebrow at Mando, adjusting her bag on her shoulder so it didn't bump against her staff. Her back wasn't happy. But she didn't think it wise to go anywhere without her things, given her luck recently. 

"... Let's. Just get to the outpost and see what we find." he managed to get out, sounding strained. Lu couldn't help but admit she was taking some small satisfaction in his discomfort. Serves him right for acting all hard on Nevarro. Serves him right for nearly knocking the shit out of her, more than once; even if it was out of haste. But she decided she wouldn't be so hard herself, for the small strange green baby that trusted him.

Lu didn't know why, not yet, but the kid was the lynch pin. The Mando had sacrificed his Hunter's Guild status, broke their rules and killed their men, for the sake of the little one. She didn't expect him to stick his neck out for her, but it was a rare thing in the Galaxy, to find a person who wasn't in it for solely personal gains.  _ Does he know what the kid can do?  _

Lu couldn't help but ponder the whole thing while she listened to the planet's  _ songs _ . She walked just behind the Mandalorian, off his right shoulder, the baby waddled along between them. Their feet crunching the needles off the deciduous looking trees of the forest, muffled whispers against the soft earth and grass. Occasionally Lu would catch a tilt to the helmet; keeping an eye on her in his limited peripherals. Daylight from the systems star was warm, the sky a brilliant blue. His armour looked brighter in this light, not necessarily less imposing; but the gleam of the beskar seemed less aggressive to Lu, here. 

_ Light save me. The Gods have upped their ante. Must be for putting me through so much shit…  _ She could not help but have a sense that she stumbled into something greater at play. Lu remembered the voice from her vision, to  _ trust her feelings _ . 

After a time, the little one was not the quickest but was determined to walk on his own anyway, they entered the small outpost. She let the sounds of the people flow through her mind;  _ songs _ of laid back small folk, peaceful, happy. Indeed there is a tavern, a variety of people occupying rough wooden tables, conversations momentarily hushing, bunches of eyes finding the Mandalorian as he entered before her. She was too preoccupied by hunger to be bothered by the questioning stares of the locals. Following Mando through the throngs of people part of her hoped she'd get lucky and be here for a while. A lothcat hissed and snarled at the baby as he made to approach, reminding her to be mindful of her surroundings. Lu plucked the kid up off the floor, his long ears drooped, disappointed. Mando appeared to have found them a table, silently motioning for her to sit.

"Don't stray." she muttered to the child as she sat him between her and Mando. He made a small whine as if to say he just wanted to make friends. Lu gave the kid a sympathetic look as she shrugged her bag and staff off her back and slung them over the back of the chair before sitting. She tried to not be overly aware of Mando's T visor watching their interactions even as he surveyed the area. No doubt assessing any potential risks in their surroundings. She thought danger here not unlikely, but this wasn't Nevarro.

Lu had almost forgotten how terrifying everything had been back there, the contrast of Sorgan's lush peace jarring. It all happened so fast; her arrival, a couple shows and a bar fight she started, the Mandalorian and his strange green baby,  _ imperials,  _ and then a whole fuckton of mandalorians and Karga getting shot, her passing out. In hindsight she now knew the Mandalorians had been the source of that ancient rhythm that had been occupying the back of her mind for a week; when it came to a head it nearly broke her. That, dehydration and being tossed bodily around the source of her nosebleed, Lu was certain.

The barkeep approached their table, a homely woman with a hawk nose and dark curls. Lu asked for fruits and bread along with broth for the little one. Lu was starving and this place was bound to have something good to eat. Something  _ fresh _ . She needed protein but it had been too long since she last ate however, and didn't want to risk discomfort from anything too rich. Her stomach ached at the prospect of food. Mando declined sustenance in exchange for information on a woman sitting a few tables away. Lu cursed herself for being distracted. He knew something about the deep teal armoured woman that she obviously missed.  _ Don't get complacent, Lu. Why are you like this?  _ She internally scolded herself. 

The barkeep took their requests happily at the sight of the amount of credits Mando placed on the table before Lu could offer her own; the barkeep profusely thanked him and offered a flagon of Spotchka. It was probably what she'd see in half a day. 

But as she walked away, Mando visibly stiffened; A predator wary of danger.  _ Light save me… What's the problem now? _ Lu was  _ not _ about to let him turn this place into another battle ground.

"Watch the kid." that rough metallic modulator not doing much to hide the unsaid "don't go anywhere" in his tone. Hard and curt, no nonsense and none too pleased. He walked off before Lu even had a chance to respond, boots striking with dull thuds on the tavern floor, dark tattered woolen cape flapping behind him. She couldnt help but sigh and shrug, looking to her tiny green companion. 

"Is he always like this? Just running head first into trouble?... Uh. Why am I even asking you? The answer is as plain as his  _ face _ …" Lu huffed, elbow on the table, her chin resting on the back of her leathered hand. The kid made questioning noises at her like he was joining in right in the conversation with her. His big ears leaning in whatever direction he inclined his head.  _ The audacity, being so cute.  _ She patted him on his head and adjusted the front of his canvas jumpsuit.

The barkeep returned with their food and broth, Lu thanked her, and she left the two of them to it. Lu unceremoniously shoved some of the fruit in her mouth as she spread what she assumed was a kind of butter on a slice of dark spongy bread. Her hunger overrode caring much of what it was; it hadn't spent a few weeks in transport before she got to eat it, and that's what mattered to her at the moment. And it tasted  _ amazing.  _ Until she noticed that the kid was making a break for the exit with his soup cup in hands.  _ Light save me, how did he do that so fast?  _ She scarfed another piece of whatever fruit, dashed from the table and picked up the kid just before he got out to the open, taking his cup of broth so it wouldn't spill. He immediately fussed and whined, frustrated she thwarted his efforts. She shifted him to her hip and rocked him a little to settle. 

"What is it? Are you looking for the Mando?" she asked mostly to herself. Though when he looked up at her she could have sworn he was saying "duh".

" _ Okay! _ Okay. Fine. We'll go find him. He can't have gotten far." he gave an affirming gurgle as the two of them began their search. Lu called to the barkeep to mind their table as they stepped back into the daylight.

And as she figured, the walking beskar wall of a man did  _ not _ get far. She and the kid found Mando quickly. The sounds of two people trying to beat the shit out of each other wasn't hard to miss amongst the relative stillness of the outpost and forest. Together they watched the two warriors hash it out for a moment; she internally put some imaginary credits on the teal armoured woman. The kid reached for his soup; she handed it to him. Mando and the woman stopped, their blasters drawn simultaneously, facing each other while prone. At once both of them turned and looked at her as the kid slurped his cup of broth very loudly, and seemingly deliberately, from her hip. Lu couldn't help but grin as Mando's body language read instantly exasperated.  _ You perfect little goblin.  _ She beamed internally over the kids comedic timing. 

"Is this how you always make friends?" She asked Mando, half in jest. But only half. He said nothing, accepting he just got busted getting into trouble, perhaps? She turned to the armoured woman who chuckled, Lu noticing her rebel alliance tattoo just below her eye.

_ A Mandalorian, and now a Rebel.  _ Her luck was absolutely strange, finding herself in such company.  _ Gods, am I a joke to you?  _ She silently whined _. _

"Want some soup?" she asked the woman instead. Keeping her issues with her God's to herself. Mando made a begrudging, annoyed sound with a heavy sigh as he picked himself up. 

Back inside the tavern the four of them sat at the table, Lu eating the entirety of her plate. Cara Dune's  _ song _ was bold and fierce, but had a sweet melody under it all that told Lu that there was a softness to her at the same time. It was refreshing to be around a presence that didn't feel too close to some past personal  _ complications… _

Even if they had a few degrees of separation going on, even if Lu was the only one aware of it. Her people had deep ties to the Rebellion; so deep that it was uncommon for most involved with them and the New Republic to know. Even during the days of the Rebellion and the civil war, it was kept as secret as possible. Perhaps it was because of this, that Cara was a person she found easy to at least not be immediately suspicious of.

Lu found herself speaking much more easily, hunger and thirst satiated. Even if she kept her input innocuous and vague. The kid beside her a content gurgling canvas bundle watching them converse, big green ears shifting as he moved. It all lifted her spirits, even if she knew she always had to be careful to not share too much.

The two women had some easy laughs together. Cara full on teasing a little when Mando became visibly uncomfortable when she asked  _ personal _ questions; intent innocent, but he was definitely monetarily taken aback. Lu had to stifle a laugh and distract herself with the kid for a moment to cover herself, not wanting to add to his awkwardness. Her profession made her desensitized in a way so she wasn't bothered about that either; Humanoids see her and they can't help themselves. It was how she had earned relative success. Used it to her advantage to get out of more than one shit situation too, when she had to. She let people see in her what  _ they _ wanted to see. 

Mando, however, was very obviously unaccustomed to that sort of  _ casual conversation _ . The discussion quickly shifted after a momentary silence and a curt metallic denial. Another strange juxtaposition in a man who chased bail jumpers and other Galactic scum for money. 

When he and Cara were exchanging some battle stories, Lu found herself intently listening when he spoke; his additions to the conversation often short and to the point. He was straightforward and blunt and he would often pause in consideration before answering. His voice was smokey,  _ deep _ in as much the sense of mystery than the auditory meaning alone. She was beginning to navigate through the metallic rasp of his helmet's modulator to find notes of  _ truth _ . She was finding a subtle warmth that she silently hoped wasn't just the modulator fooling her senses. 

Cara recounted tales of the "clean up on Endor" and not signing up for bodyguarding politicians. And Lu definitely admired that, and was glad she didn't find herself opposing the dark haired rebel. Unarmed she'd lose in a heartbeat.

After the much welcome socializing, she couldn't help but feel some disappointment when Cara departed the tavern and left the three of them to their business. Making a crack that she was here first as they said their goodbyes and Lu couldn't help but chuckle. Mando looked at the child and then after a moment to her. Beskar helmet tilting in her direction. 

"Well, we best move along. Looks like this planet's taken." his tone was dry and unsurprised. Lu kept herself from sighing, she didn't want to leave this place just yet. But she couldn't help but notice he said  _ we _ so easily, did he mean to include her, or just talking to the kid? It dawned on her that she had no idea where in the Outer Rim Sorgan was even located, she'd never heard of it before. It wasn't like Mando owed her anything, so in turn she really didn't expect anything. 

Lu contemplated her situation quietly on the way back to the ship, letting the beats of their steps on the soft earth reverberate in her mind, the kid happy to be carried on her hip this time. Trying to formulate some form of excuse to convince Mando to leave her and the kid on Sorgan, even as night fell and he was beginning to set up a makeshift camp; he didn't speak to her, but he did look over at her now and again where she now sat on an empty cargo box with the kid, bag next to her on the ground and staff on the ground behind her boot heels. 

Lu supposed it was fair he didn't trust her. He didn't know her, hadn't expected to find her in the imperial hideout. And if anything, she  _ maybe  _ owed him for getting her off that rock. The Mandalorian is also protective of the kid nearly to a fault; he could've let Karga give him back to the Imps, but chose to risk his life to fight instead. She had been so sure he was only in it for the reward. It wasn't likely he'd be okay leaving the kid with her and taking off himself.

She was feeling more certain now he hadn't been lying about the kid and his change of heart. He admitted what he did, and why. And Lu knew a lesser man would not have done the same.  _ Even if that modulator is a barrier to his natural voice, there was no benefit to his honesty _ … she chanced a look over, his back turned. Broad shoulders made more impressive by the beskar pauldrons, tattered cape swaying as he moved. She looked back down before she was caught staring. 

She pondered his behaviour, idly picking at some worn threads on her cloak pooled around her, internally hoping she wouldn't be wrong. She'd been sure about people's intentions before, and she learned in the worst ways that she could trust words alone. Words can form a lie, but how they say them gives clues. And that lesson had been one that nearly killed her, she dared never repeat it. The trouble she was having now though, was the beskar he wore was like a veil obscuring her from hearing his  _ song _ , his  _ truth.  _ Whatever it may be. 

Lu tried to ignore the notion to get to know him more, if at least to try and put her suspicions to rest. A large part of her wanted to talk with him to learn more about his people, and perhaps a small part wanted to listen to him speak, though she didn't want to admit that to herself.

How did Mandalore survive the Empires reign? Did they assist in the Rebellion? Her mother hadn't been able to teach her much beyond The Clone War. During the early years of the Rebellion; they were too often too long apart. But anything she asked would require her offer too much in return. And she couldn't risk that. 

Mando quietly went about checking the ship and rearranging things as he worked. She stayed out of his way minding the baby, as everything she owned she carried with her. Expecting him to come over any time and tell her to head out, and she really wouldn't have been angry about it. The ship was his space. As usual Lu felt like she didn't  _ belong.  _ But, there was still something to this whole situation that felt  _ bigger _ than she could see and  _ feel _ right now. She didn't want to leave the kid, and didn't plan on it. Lu felt like they needed each other. She'd need to actively listen to  _ The Song _ to glean for insight on it; the voice in that strange vision told her to, and she figured it wouldn't hurt to try if she could find the opportunity to. 

Tiredness was starting to set in though and for a moment she half considered going over, laying right back on the floor of the hold to sleep. Damn whatever the Mandalorian would think about it. Instead she focussed on the child, somehow he had a silver ball in his hands? He looked at it intently, six green chubby fingers clutching it. He made the occasional gurgle like he was trying to tell her about it. Seemed special to him. After witnessing how fast he could be in the tavern, she didn't bother asking herself where he got it from. And he couldn't answer in a way she'd understand anyway. She internally leaned into calm, calling on  _ serenity _ ; instinctively reached out with her feelings, and felt a  _ pull _ . They were being approached. She and the kid both looked in the direction she felt it at the same time. 

From between a stand of trees, an old repulsor lift sled appeared in the dim light that spilled out of the ship into the night-dark forest. Two men were in the seats at the front. They wore simple roughspun clothes dyed in varying shades of blues? The light was low, and the lanterns were doing strange things to colours so it was hard to tell. Their  _ songs  _ felt anxious to Lu…  _ Searching for something?  _ They looked like just average small folk. What could they need from them? 

"Uh excuse me?" one of them tentatively asked aloud, he had long dark hair. Mando ignored them though she couldn't help but look over her shoulder at him for a moment. The beskar man continued about his business. Lu waved back as they waved to say hello but they jumped when they locked eyes Mando, moving about the outside. 

"excuse me, sir." He tried again. He seemed easily intimidated but Lu noted determination in his face as he looked to Mando earnestly. She was immediately intrigued.

"There something I can help you with?" The Mandalorian eventually asked. Not unkindly, but Lu couldn't help but hear some annoyance in his question.

_ What could smallfolk in a place like this need a Mando's help with?  _ Lu couldn't help but wonder. She stayed silent with the kid, watching. The fairer, short haired one seemed almost annoyed, like he didn't want to be there. Silence for a moment. The long haired man tried again. 

"Uh. Yeah. Raiders." the long haired one trailed off, nervous and unsure. 

"We have money." said the short haired one, quickly. 

"So you think I'm some kind of mercenary?" Mando stopped and looked directly at the two of them. Dark T menacing in the low light. He was partially up on the ships side ramp, an imposing silver form lit by the interior of the ship.

"You are a Mandalorian right?" the long haired one asked. Mando turned from them and resumed his puttering. Undeterred the blue-clad man continued, "Or at least wearing Mandalorian armour. That  _ is  _ Mandalorian armour right?" he blurted out quickly, covering up the quiet.

"it is." Mando replied, beginning to sound exasperated. 

"See? I told him." Said the short haired one, smacking his fellow on the arm. 

"Sir, I've read a lot about your people…" he paused, stammering a moment to find the right word "Tribe." Another pause, "If half I've read is true…" he trailed off.  _ It is.  _ Lu thought to herself immediately, continuing to watch in silence. 

"We have money." The short haired one tried again. 

"How much?" Mando eventually asked. To Lu it didn't sound like he wanted them to answer. 

"Everything we have, sir." Answered the long haired one.

"Our whole harvest was stolen." spoke the other. 

"-Krill. We're krill farmers." the long haired one clarified. Every sentence they added a detail seemed like it was heavy to the Mandalorian. A day in, and Lu learned that even for lack of a "face" that you could read an expression from, his body made up for that. 

"We brew spotchka. Our whole village chipped in-" 

"It's not enough." Mando's voice rang flatly, cutting him off as if one more detail would change his mind. Lu was torn between being curious and being pissed off at his stubbornness.

_ These people need help. Right out of the gates and he's rejecting it? Because it's not as much as his damn Guild rates? The audacity. _ Lu was feeling herself getting genuinely frustrated. The Mandalorian went back to his rearranging 

"Are you sure? You don't even know what the job is." the long haired one now sounding desperate, and just a smidge below being straight up whiney. 

"I know it's not enough."Mando answered, not bothering to stop his puttering, his back kept to them. His tone was clear that the armoured man was done with the conversation. 

Something  _ pulled _ in her mind. There was more to this than just Raiders…  _ Light save me. No more surprises please…  _ she prayed. The kid let out a small plaintive whine, sensing the dip in her mood. Sorgan was too peaceful. She needed this peace. Lu ruefully hoped the Gods were at least getting a laugh out of all this. 

"This is everything we have." the short haired one at least had the gumption to sound upset about this. 

"We'll give you more. After the next harvest." the long haired one said overtop of his fellows pleading. Mando's patience clearly run thin, he shut the ships door with a menacing hiss that made the krill farmers both jump. 

_ Hunters and mercs alike. So damn prickly about their reputations…  _ And just as Lu was going to offer her own services, Light forsake what argument that damn beskar clad man may have about it, they gave up. Turning back to their sled. 

"Come on." the short haired one patted the long haired one on the back. "Let's head back." he said, half defeated, half angry. The two of them turned back to their sled. The long haired one slumped his shoulders. 

"Took us the whole day to get here. Now we have to ride back with no protection. To the middle of nowhere" the long haired one was so dejected. Lu's was finding herself getting outright angry at the Mandalorians stubbornness, now, while also becoming annoyed that she's reminded he  _ is _ still a Hunter.

_ They're just farmers you oaf. Light forsake the credits. You started out surprising me and this is where you're going to be a typical money hungry mercenary?  _ She rolled her eyes. The kid whimpered, looking tired.

_ Me too kiddo, me too. I'd kill for an actual bed right now...  _ A bath too, her body was still aching and the more tired she got the more she was hurting; pain relief rapidly starting to wear off. But she didn't want to press her luck. Last time she wished to get something so bad, the Gods sent a green skinned baby and his cranky metallic man to clearly teach her a lesson about being careful what one wished for. 

"Where do you live?" Mando's sudden question was timed perfectly to stop any arguments Lu had before she could air them. The metallic ring of his voice sounding more interested than tired for a moment. He had stopped, considering the krill farmers with more interest. 

"On a farm. Weren't you listening? Were farmers." the long haired one whined. He might have a bit of a nervous disposition but he was ready to throw snark. Lu liked him already. Mando momentarily, seems to have forgotten she was sitting there with the kid. The armoured man didn't necessarily sound like he hadn't been listening, to his benefit, Lu had to admit. Although reluctantly. 

"In the middle of nowhere?" Mando's tone was like he was crossing off a checklist now, more than anything. 

"Yes." Hesitantly hopeful answer. 

"You have lodging?" The T visor asked them.  _ Come on, Mandalorian. Take the lodgings and be done with it. _

"Yeah. Absolutely!" The long haired ones mood instantly improved.

"Good. Come up here and help." Mando's voice actually sounded  _ pleased?  _ Alright. Lu could almost laugh at this entire exchange, but it was kinda fun being a fly on the wall. If she were honest with herself, this day had strangely been the best she'd had in a long time… and it was for once, as herself; albeit still mostly just a short monikered shadow, but more herself than she'd been around others in  _ years.  _

The two farmers wasted no time scurrying up the ramp of the ship. 

"Well now that that's settled." She finally decided to chime in; her tone deliberate. She leaned back with her palms out behind her, looking up the ramp at Mando over her shoulder, raising her eyebrow. The kid looked up at him too, from his perch in her lap. 

_ What took you so long?  _ She voiced internally, holding her gaze to him so he knew she was getting a kick out of this. She shifted her weight onto one hand to free the other. She gently smoothed some of the delicate hairs over the little ridges of the kids forehead. He gurgled in the affirmative and reached both his arms out to Mando as if to say  _ let's go _ . 

The Mandalorian looked at her, posture saying he don't know why she didn't pipe up sooner, and gave a sigh. Though Not as annoyed as she expected? More like he was audibly resigning himself to his fate, with an edge of exhaustion.

Lu smirked and stood up off the cargo container onto her feet, kid in arm. She tried to not look  _ too _ smug, even though she had to stifle a groan from a jolt of pain as she threw her bag over her shoulder. She was going to be even worse in the morning. The two men hurried, following the Mandalorian to the sled, all three with boxes. Staff in hand, kid in the other Lu stifled a yawn. Made like she was going to help after putting them all in the sled and taking a moment to adjust things for the kids comfort. But Mando just shook his head 'no' and idly waved at the sled, the gesture lacking much emphasis. 

"Keep the kid occupied." He rasped and looked down at the little green face looking up at him from in the sled, then to her. His tone implied he was telling the kid to stay occupied more than telling her to occupy him. She raised another eyebrow at the black T shaped void of his helmet. They were standing close enough she had to look up to make her eyes meet where she thought his would be. The distance being not much wider than the child between them, staring up. She leaned on the sled with the other hand on her hip, her body and especially her back aching. But wanting to argue about being relegated to babysitter like she was incapable of carrying her own weight and helping, regardless. They stood like that for a moment. The kid made some quiet, curious sounds.

_ What is the Mando thinking about?  _ The night was still aside from the sounds of the feet of farmers walking around them. Staring up at the black void in the helmet of beskar, the steps sounded far away. 

In a bizarre impulse of curiosity, instead of vocalizing her argument, she dared  _ reach _ out with her feelings to try and figure that out. She strained, trying to hear his  _ song _ past the ringing of the beskar. She thought could  _ hear _ something, but  _ Sadness _ reached back to her. She immediately drew herself back. Somewhat startled… She didn't expect that and it took everything in her to remain absolutely still and neutral. Outward expression could give her away…  _ Serenity _ , she reminded herself. _ Maybe it was feedback of myself caused by the beskar?  _

"... Sit. They're enough help." He said with a sigh that sounded more like he was stifling a yawn himself, and made a more pointed motion at the sled before she could argue. The only reason she decided to actually stay quiet is because it was becoming obvious Mando was too tired to put up with anyone's shit. His command strained, broad shoulders taking a barely noticeable slump. It  _ was _ getting late. She was tired, the kid was getting tired; it was no surprise Mando was tired. she had no clue when he slept last. So, the sled it was. 

It took no time for the three of them to load up. Mando bringing what felt like an entire damn armoury with them. Lu and the kid had gotten comfy and settled in. She hoped she would be able to score a nap… 

_ Hope it's not far. I'd rather a bed to sleep in…  _ The farmers were about to hop to their seats in the front when Mando stopped the long haired one at the side of the sled. 

"I'm gonna need one more thing. Give me those credits." he said, tone flat. Holding his hand out and open expectantly. Lu found herself smacked with a sudden anger

_ And here I thought we were making progress.  _ This tasted bitter to Lu. She sat in stiff silence, caught between calling him out and being too tired to listen to the inevitable Hunter's bullshit about business being business, like she hadn't heard  _ that _ before. She rolled her eyes and deliberately shifted focus on the kid, getting him settled next to her. The farmer put the sack of credits in Mando's open hand, clinking. If she didn't stay occupied she'll end up picking a fight with him. The kid made a sad, trepidatious noise. 

"Sorry, kiddo." she whispered, petting an ear. "It's okay." she tried to soothe him, snuggling him into some of her cloak at her side. Lu didn't want the kid thinking she was mad at him. So, she worked on swallowing the bitter reality. Though maybe it was more that she was disappointed in herself for thinking the Mandalorian would be different. She didn't want to think about it. 

Mando jumped in the sled, looking down to the kid who was making a contended noise half way through a yawn. He stretched out at the tail end of the sled, the child between them. He regarded her a moment, T shaped void giving nothing away. The Mandalorian eventually signaled for the farmers to go, and the five of them silently slid into the darkness of the Sorgani forests. 

Lu was finding herself on the edge of an uncomfortable doze when the sled stopped, seemingly after not too long. Not as long as she had been expecting. She wasn't feeling up to making any decisions, so just stayed where she was. Her body ached and she was so, so stiff. The kid was making noises next to her but she was too busy fighting exhaustion while trying to ignore the pain building up enough so she couldn't sleep. The Mando could come bark at her again when it was time to move. 

The sled dipped prompting her to open her eyes. Mando and… Cara jumped in. 

"Hey!" Cara greeted her. Lu's brain was slow to catch up, the edge of sleep still blanketing her awareness. Mando stayed silent, he took his position back on the opposite side of the kid from her. 

"Uh… Hey?" she answered, confused. Rubbing an eye and adjusting the front of her cloak carefully, minding the kid. Mando told the farmers to keep going, they too, looking half asleep. The lantern on the back of the sled swayed as they resumed their journey. The night drenched forest silent aside from the noise they made. Lu was too tied to muster the effort to join in the conversation at the moment. She hurt too much. 

"So we're basically running off a band of Raiders for lunch money?." Cara asked, looking to Mando. 

"They're quartering us in the middle of nowhere." Mando surprised Lu by answering Cara so casually. "Last I checked, that's a pretty square deal for somebody in your position." There was something to his voice? Amusement behind the tiredness? She was too fucking sore and tired for games.  _ Light save me…  _ Mando continued, Lu trying to keep her eyes open.

"Worst case scenario you tune up your blaster. Best case, we're a deterrent." he continued. She was drawn to his voice, eyelids slowly drooping. "I can't imagine there's anything in these trees an ex-shock trooper couldn't handle." He finished, laying back in the sled from his sitting position. 

"Appreciate it. It's nice to get paid to fight, instead of doing it for free." Cara eventually said with her smooth toned confidence, tucking the credits away on her person. She had said that to Mando, not Lu. She looked over at him to try and figure out what Cara had meant by that. It took time for her mental gears to get into gear. 

_ He didn't keep the credits. He paid Cara with them for her help instead…  _

The Mandalorian stared right back at her, sprawled out in his corner of the sled, putting gloved hands behind that silver helmet. Every inch of his body full of a subtle smugness; read that he knew that  _ she knew _ she got him wrong about the money. Even as tired as she was, Lu knew she'd been served a helping of humble pie on a damn beskar plate. He must have read her like a damn spaceport docking permit, and then let her be mad to make a point.  _ Its taken. _

The kid laid back, just like the Mando and closed his eyes; snuggling into her cloak a little. Cara laid back in her corner of the sled as well, settling in for sleep. Lu looked down to adjust some fabric around the kid so she didn't keep staring, half-asleep, at the Mando like a fool. 

"G'night" Cara said simply. Lu couldn't help hear the implication the Dropper was in on the joke. 

"Goodnight." Lu said, letting her defeat be audible but still snarky. Because damn him and his humble pie. She risked a glance over at him as she pulled her legs under her, putting her bag up behind her for a pillow. Body sluggish like exhaustion tied up her joints. Trying to find more comfort in order to sleep. The kid looked up at her with half lidded eyes and yawned, making low gurgles as if complaining. 

Mando nodded at her and dropped his arms, folding his hands together over his chest plate and laid his head back. Lu heard him breathe deep as his T vizor looked up into the inky night sky. She sighed heavy and lay back herself, praying sleep came quickly.


	6. The Ties That Bind

"Everyone! They're here!" 

"Come on!" 

Lu awoke to the distant laughs and cheers of children in her ears. Pain rushed across her awareness, daylight leaving her momentarily bright-blind as she cracked open her eyes. Her back and shoulders felt like she'd been crushed in a very specific line across her body.

_Oh right,_ _because it had._ Right where she'd landed on her staff, the force alone would have been painful enough but Mando had landed on top of her. _I never want to see Nevarro again. Not enough credits in all the Outer Rim_ … she complained internally. 

In hindsight she realised she wasn't completely crushed because he _had_ tried to keep weight off her. And especially off her chest where she'd been holding the baby. Her shoulders still hurt, her neck, but the worst was mid and lower back where the worst of the impact was localised. Being in this kind of pain made her tense, sleeping half-sitting on her side with her legs under her, has left her legs cramped too; all compounding and making it worse. _Gods be good and let these farmers have some form of bath…_ and a mirror. She should check the bruising. 

"Well, it seems they're happy to see us." Lu registered Mando's voice. The kid was making curious but excited noises next to her. Lu half groaned as she slowly sat up. Willing her body to work out the pain. Some of this will be relieved with moving. She couldn't help but scrunch her face, she tried to camouflage this by rubbing her eyes. She was still  _ so _ tired. Her body desperately needed bed rest. But she'd make due with what she got. 

"Looks like." Cara retorted. The sled rocked as the dropper got out. Mando following. Lu attempted to stretch up but it did nothing but send a wave of hot pain through her already sore muscles. She sucked in air and stifled a groan, nearly doubling over in half. She held her breath a moment and waited for it to subside. The kid turned and looked at her, making a worried whine. She exhaled slowly. 

"I'm okay. I'm okay…" She whispered for as much the child's benefit as her own as she straightened. Waving at him to say  _ don't worry about me. _

Dozens of pairs of eyes were lining up at the sled, all fawning over the kid. The small canvas sack wiggled and stumbled over some of the contents of the sled. The little guy was happy to see other children. Lu managed to open her eyes enough to take in the scene around her, and her breath hitched. 

Before her, a village spread out in a clearing edged with dense forest. Vast blue sky above reflecting in pools that lined the perimeter in sections. Narrow earthen pathways enough for two people to walk comfortably between them. Simple hut buildings scattered about, made of wooden frames, thatched walls and roofs. Some had windows and porches and a variety of different Drying racks adorned the area as well, hides and fish skins on some, laundry and textiles on others, hanging in the warm sun. People began to turn their attention towards them. The two farmers that had asked for help calling in familiar happy tones for assistance unloading. Lu couldn't help but stare openly, eyes wide. Her pain momentarily forgotten. 

_ Just like home…  _ She almost didn't believe her eyes. The God's decided to have some mercy and give her not just a lush planet as a break from so much bleakness in her life; but a village that evoked feelings in her she hadn't felt in a very long time.  _ How strange… A Mandalorian. The kid. That voice in my dream. A Rebel… And now this? Light save me…  _

A few of the kids waved at her, drawing her attention back to the present. She waved back, doing her best to give them a warm smile trying not to grimace from pain as she shifted and went to grab her bag and staff only to promptly regret it.  _ Dank Ferrick…  _ She swore internally. Very aware of small ears. 

A set of yellow leathered fingers and a beskar vambrace reached into her vision towards her bag. Normally she would have reacted but pain and exhaustion from being unable to properly sleep, as well as the shock of seeing a village so akin to memories she'd long buried made her not care. She didn't have it in her to move.  _ Just leave me here…  _

"Hey… Let's go." Mando said to her, a tentativeness to his tone that barely registered to her. Grabbing her bag, but pausing before picking it up when she didn't react. "You listening?" He asked. 

"Mmm? S'leave me… Here." she managed get out with a weak groan. She felt herself swaying slightly, half sitting on her knees, half leaning on some of her bag. Mando next to her standing outside the sled, his hand on her bag. 

"You three coming?" Cara asked to them, she was already grabbing a box to unload off the shed but looked to Lu. And also paused. "Lu, you okay?" the Dropper dipped her head down to get a better look at her face under her headscarf. Lu still couldn't find it in her to do anything more than nod. At least she hoped how she was moving looked like a nod. Everything hurt and she couldn't focus. 

"You  _ are _ injured." The Mando stated flatly, tone implying some surprise. Like he thought he should have noticed the severity sooner, as if she hadn't told him she was fine. Like she hadn't been hiding it all day yesterday, made easier by the pain blockers she'd cleared out of his kit, now worn off. She may trust him to not be a danger to the kid but she couldn't trust him to be of no harm to her yet. She knew Hunter's better. 

"Mmph-Mfine." Lu said flatly, annoyed. She just wanted to sleep. Why wouldn't they just do whatever and leave her here? Mandos T visor studying her, his body language saying he knew she was full of shit.  _ Gods be good. Shut up and go away.  _

She partially stood, ignoring the pins and needles in her cramped legs, and paused to steady herself on the ledge of the sled. If they didn't want to just let her be, fine. She was going to get out of the sled.  _ Still had worse. I'm okay…  _ She had had worse, back when she'd been younger and her body hadn't gotten so soft. The hard truth was that she wasn't as durable as she used to be, of her own volition. Her own fault for stopping training and keeping her skills honed for the past number of years. 

She wasn't about to let herself fall out of the sled, but pain was making it difficult to gauge her balance. Her limbs felt so heavy. Mando appeared before her, stepping over. She wasn't really paying attention to him, trying to focus on getting down. Lu pivoted, swinging her legs from the inside of the sled to the outside. The motion made her dizzy from her muscles painful protest. She felt her body giving out like she was just going to slide right off. A vague hope to just land on her feet and not crumple to the ground made its way through the fog. 

Lu didn't get what she hoped, and the only thing that stopped her very ungraceful journey to the ground was Mando. He had grabbed her in time, keeping her on her feet. She could've screamed when his arm caught her lower back where it was the worst; he'd moved in time to try and get the arm around her waist but her uncontrolled movement caused him to fumble. It didn't matter how careful or not he may be trying to be, a feather dropped on her there could've made her scream. 

Everything spun and she sucked in air and struggled to make no sound, strangled noises escaping her. Instinctively she grabbed for something to keep her upright. Her gloved hand finding enough fabric on his other arm. She grasped it, just beneath his pauldron. Swaying a moment. Suspended between his arms, trying to make her legs gain some control. 

" _Dank Ferrick."_ Mando's metallic voice was gruff as the curse rang out, he was startled? Or angry? It was hard to pay attention to anything except her body begging to give out. Probably both. " _Cara!_ she needs a medic!" he called out. 

"j-just. Just need sleep." She croaked out. Unable to look up at him, she kept her head low. Mando ignored her and was saying something to the farmers. The children were all looking at them, distracted by his sudden orders. He grabbed her bag and threw it over his shoulder. Keeping the arm she clutched out for her to stay steady.

And then, all at once her back screamed and the Mandalorian was picking her up. She groaned and tried to tell him to put her down, but he was already walking. Every step sent waves of pain through her back from the arm across it supporting her, his other under her knees. She kept her eyes slammed shut to try and focus as best she could on not passing out. He'd picked her up like she'd weighed nothing. Vaguely she was feeling self conscious about being carried like some damsel in distress. 

She felt herself being placed on a cot, pain subsiding. She still hurt, but the pressure removed on parts of her flesh were welcome. Cara's voice rang through her mind. She sounded far away. Outdoor sounds were muted to… They must be in one of the huts. 

"No medpacks." Cara spoke. "But a woman, Omera, is coming to help."

A woman healer attending to her made what anxiety she'd had about being vulnerable, relieved. She tried to croak out to them that she was okay, sleep and a few days was all she needed. She wasn't in danger, but lack of sleep and her body needing sleep in order to help heal was causing a kind of cascading collapse in her. Left Lu with no course of action but to let exhaustion take her. The distant sounds of the village fading away… 

She was a little girl again. She was crying, the other children had been mean to her. Her mother held her in her lap, letting her cry and wail. It echoed on the empty stone walls of their small, secretive temporary home on Alderaan… Always on the run. 

_ Mixed-blood _ .  _ Monster. You don't belong here. Your House is cursed. Your family destroyed our home. Your mother betrayed us.  _

"I know it hurts, Little Luna." Her mother said her warm soft voice full of sadness, petting Lu's two coloured hair as her little body wracked with sobs. Long delicate fingers smoothing Lu's over her tiny, child-sized braids. Wrapped in her mother's arms. "They said the same to me. But it's only because they're afraid.  _ Fear _ rules their hearts."

"I don't-I'm n-…" Lu cried. "I'm not scary! I didn't  _ do anything! _ " sobs wracked her small body. 

"You are right, Luna,  _ you _ didn't do anything." Her mother acknowledged sadly. Her sorrow ran deep.

Lu had never really remembered ever seeing her happy. She said Lu was born blessed the  _ Priestess of Joy _ , and that was why. She said she wanted Lu to have the life she didn't, so she gave all her  _ Joy _ to Lu. A sacrifice of pure love that allowed her conception after so many failed attempts, her mother told her. She was  _ special. _

The only person Lu knew that looked like her, was her mother. Lu never felt like she belonged anywhere, except with her. They both shared the dual coloured hair and eyes that marked their mixed heritage. Her people had become extremely prickly of bloodlines. Lu's Grandmother's conception of a half-human daughter from man sent as ambassador to their home world upended the political landscape of the Houses. They believed her House cursed their people with a foreigner's blood… again. An echo of a thousand year old legend… And when war amongst the Houses broke out, Lu's mother turned to outside aide; called on ancient pacts. Despite all that, it ended with a fall from grace despite her familys best efforts… 

_ Was that what that voice had meant? _

Lu wouldn't understand what her mother really meant until she had grown into adulthood and could understand her people's history better… Long after Enarra Jinn was executed for a litany of crimes against the Empire. 

Something broke through Lu's strange sleep and she became aware that she was in a bed. She  _ hurt _ . She relaxed and tried to let sleep take her fully again…  _ tired of visions and dreams. Light grant me deep enough sleep to not dream…  _

Voices came over her awareness, but she couldn't open her eyes…

"How long has it been since you've taken that off?" A woman's voice. Kind and soft. Shy but curiosity clearly winning out. Her  _ song _ reminded Lu of daylight over misty mountain forests. Serene and strong. 

"Yesterday." Mando's metallic answer was slightly deadpan, but soft. Almost like he was unsure of why recently every one keeps asking him about this. 

"…I mean-In front of someone else…" She clarified. 

Lu's heart sank. She shouldn't be hearing this. She didn't want to eavesdrop. Her people earned others stories, they didn't ask for them. Anything he said wouldn't be for her to know… But she couldn't stop. Lu prayed this was delerium from lack of sleep, and injury. But after hearing those warm tones of The Mandalorians voice begin to come through as he relaxed and eased into conversing at the tavern; she was  _ pulled _ to listen. 

"... I wasn't much older than they are." His answer laden with emotions Lu couldn't properly make out.

"You haven't shown your face to any one since you were a kid?" Omera's voice was full of surprise. Lu shared it…  _ Since he was a child… A lifetime shrouded in beskar…  _ she couldn't fathom what that would be like. To never feel daylight on your face openly. To never know what your lovers skin would feel like on your own cheek… 

"I was happy they took me in." He started, his voice sounding so far away… "My parents were killed. And The Mandalorians took care of me. " His voice was calm, filled with acceptance; but under it Lu could hear that he lived with the lack of their presence every day. 

"I'm sorry."

"This is the Way." His voice gravely with emotion he was trying to hide. Not even the modulator could hide it from her. 

And Lu's heart would have broke, had it been whole to start with. 

He wore his sadness like a shroud, as much he did the beskar. The  _ Sadness _ she had felt,  _ had _ been his. She thought it was feedback of herself, but it was only due to it being the  _ same kind _ of sadness. The kind that was like a multifaceted miasma that clung to every moment. 

_ Loneliness.  _

_ Grief.  _

_ Loss.  _

She remembered now that he wore raw beskar. Mandalore and Lu's people were similar in that their clans and tribes wore colours and signet or sigils to signify their allegiances, histories and family… it was something that she only realised was out of place now from what she knew of Mandalore. 

The lack of  _ colour _ . No allegiances, no family. No  _ history.  _

Tears welled up and fell from her closed eyes and she welcomed exhaustion. Carried off again to a part of her past she thought long dead and abandoned… 

Lu was now just past her twelfth name day. There was a House whose first born son had strangely taken a liking to her. He was older, seventeen or so. But Lu  _ hated _ him. He'd been cruel to her just years before, on Alderaan.

Her mother was brushing her hair. Preparing it with a few drops of the rare Emberflower oil from the home world that had not existed for almost all of Lu's life. Spicy and sweet and warm. It helped to keep the long white strands more manageable. 

"I had a vision of your future, Luna" Enarra, her mother, said. Her voice echoing off the ancient walls of the strange Temple that made their new home. "He's not for you, even if he wishes otherwise."

Lu stayed quiet, taking in her mother's words. This was a dangerous time for her. She was growing into her abilities and she needed to be careful. Even if she'd become proficient with blades and she was getting stronger every day. Lu was at the top of her age group and only intended on getting better. She couldn't get bullied so easily if she was a more difficult prey. They had not been living here long but there was word that there would be more people coming.  _ All kinds _ of people. 

"His family only seeks power. The kind that comes from being born to our House. His family still act as though we number in the millions with settlements all across the Galaxy… Playing politics. Foolish." Enarra sighed heavily. Lu could tell something was bothering her, she tried to change the subject. 

"What did you see in my future?" Lu asked while her mother's fingers worked at braiding. The braid at the crown of the head first, the braid for  _ Serenity _ . Four other braids would follow. 

"You'll find what you need most when you least expect it. But you'll know when you find it." 

"How?" she was confused. 

"By the things you are not. You are the ocean and the forest. Light and air… You'll know by earth, by fire. By smoke and salt." Her mother was on the third braid now. Lu sat, listening to her voice. Beautiful and magical. And sad. She would be leaving again tomorrow. Lu didn't know how long she would be gone for this time. Every time her mother left, it could be the last; Every day of Lu's life was like a tug of war pulling her in two separate directions;  _ fear _ and  _ joy  _ both… So, she just focussed on her  _ love _ instead. Lu knew no matter what happened, her mother would always love her. 

"Find your own path, Lu. The chapter on our people's time in the Galaxy has long been closing… We thought we could change what was to come. Trust your heart, don't repeat my mistakes… Fire and Earth. Smoke and Salt. You'll know…  _ Trust your feelings. _ " Enarra Jinn's voice was as sad as it ever had been.

The familiar yet unfamiliar man's warm, loving voice of her earlier vision…  _ Trust The Song, Enarra's daughter…  _

Lu never saw her mother in person again. White hair and glimmery markings, some holo messages and teachings were all that remained… Lu's mind continued falling deeper into the oblivion of sleep. 

Five iridescent white braids streaked with dark blonde fell from Lu's mother's delicate, loving hands as she sung Iridezria's Ballad; an old legend of love and loss across the stars, and a thousand years old; Her powerfully rich, sad voice ringing out in the halls and catacombs of the ancient temple…

Five iridescent white braids swung out in a wide circle as she spun. wooden training blade in her hands swinging in a vicious arced blur, all her weight and speed behind it. The thick wooden blade finding the flesh of her opponent, collar bone snapping audibly from the force. Echoing amongst the trees of the forest… 

Five iridescent white braids danced against her naked body in the rhythm she made with her first lover; her thighs riding him in waves, his dark form beneath her. Hands gripping tightly on her flesh, markings sparkling in the dim light. Carnal moans of pleasure rippling through her senses, their fingers intertwined… 

Five iridescent white braids covered in spittle and drops of blood as they wrenched around the throat of the pudgy, vapid man who just discovered she wasn't who he thought. The soles of his black leather boots smacking the cold hard floor as his life slowly left him…

Visions of the past faded; and a full, deep sleep took her.


	7. The Peace Offering

She awoke sometime in the late afternoon. The inside of the hut? barn? is still warm despite the lowering daylight. Sounds of a village going about their business outside. Lu sat up from laying on her side in the simple, but comfortable bed. The room was plain but charming, attached to two others she could see beyond the doorless archways. The only door was the one for the main entry, currently slightly ajar. She could hear commotion outside. 

She noticed with some degree of horror she wasn't wearing her own clothes on her top half. Her headscarf still on, though the two crystal pins were removed. Covering her hair through her sleep, her blonde pieces had come loose. She was thankful her braids stayed coiled and twisted in the black fabric, hidden. Her own pants were still on, but her belt and boots both removed. In place of her simple cloth and canvas black top, she was wearing a dark blue roughspun wrapped sweater, currently reversed so her back was exposed.

It suddenly dawned on Lu that while she still ached, it was much more manageable. There was cloth dampened with something on her back. Likely something to help the bruising. It felt cool, menthol and something else herbal she didn't recognize in her nose. Must be a poultice; she peeled it off. 

She looked to the top of the bed and spied a small mirror on a bed side table. Her gloves and both crystal pins next to it. Lu carefully moved up the bed, placed the now folded damp cloth on the tablet next to her things; Leaned, twisted ever so slightly over and took a look, bringing her chin to her shoulder. Her jaw just about hit the floor. She figured it was bad but not _this_ bad. _Light save me… That looks like hell. No wonder I hurt._

From right shoulder to left hip, her staff indeed left a _nasty_ bruise. It darkened to a deep black-purple promptly at her mid and lower back, exactly where she'd figured she landed hardest and Mando accidentally added to it. Most of the rest of her was a mottled brownish-purple fading into green on her back half. _I should bill him for the damage_. She thought ruefully. 

Suddenly she _felt_ it. A sudden quiet drifted over the village. Something was up. The farmers could be heard tentatively speaking. 

Lu spied her bag on a chair that also had her cloak draped on its back. Her staff leaning against the wall. She heard two set of heavy footsteps on wood. Mando was one, the other must be Cara. 

She quickly turned the blue roughspun around and adjusted everything to keep it as secure as possible. Tied it quickly. It was long enough it was tunic on her. Lu supposed it would do though she hadn't ever considered blue her colour. At least the arms were still full length, and so long she could cover her hands, too. _Hope this Omera didn't notice the glimmer…_ she thought of her markings that would mark her as not human. Not entirely, for certain. She fixed the blonde hair at the front, making sure enough was pulled out it looked intentional, covered the strip of skin that gave a peek of collar bone. More human, distract from her markings. She tightened her headscarf as Mando's voice rang out at the outside of the buildings front door. 

"Bad news. Can't live here anymore."

"What?" and "Why?" rang out from the farmers. Had they all gathered outside? What was going on? 

"Nice bedside manner." Cara said brimming with sarcasm. Lu couldn't help but agree. She didn't know what was going on but he wasn't off to a good start. 

"You think you can do better?" Mando griped.

"Cant do any worse." the Dropper retorted. "Listen. I know this isn't what you wanted to hear." Cara addressed the crowd. Lu approached the door, and tentatively opened, stepping out and to the side. "But there are no other options." She paused here and looked over at Lu, she gave a reserved smile. The Rebel wasn't looking too happy about something. Lu nodded to her. 

Mando's body language looked surprised but nodded at Lu in greeting. She ignored the stares and questioning murmurs of the villagers and stood over next to him, nodding in acknowledgement. 

"But you took the job!" 

"Yeah!" cried voices. One of the two was one of the men that met them at Mando's ship. 

" _That_ was before we knew about the AT-ST." Cara said back. Her tone said she had more to say about it but would undoubtedly get there. Lu however found herself fighting a flash of terror coursing through her. _Not more damn Imps…_

"What is _that_?" 

"The armoured walker with giant guns that you knew about. But _didn't_ tell us." Cara said, crossing her arms. Her _song_ was frustrated. The villagers _song_ was scared and sad and confused… compounded with Lu's own carnal fear of imperial machinery she was already regretting getting out of bed. _Light save me. Why can't I catch a break?_

"Help us!" 

"Please." 

"You're supposed to help us." 

"But we hired you!" 

By _song_ Lu could tell that the woman, Omera, was at the front of the crowd gathered. Standing with her was a little girl who had the child in his little brown jumpsuit cradled in her arms like she was carrying a baby. Omera was beautiful. Tanned skin and dark hair; her face was peaceful and regal. Lu thought she looked exactly as beautiful as her _song._

"Please." Omera said, bringing in the little girl closer to her side. The little girl just kept her eyes on the Mando's green baby in her arms. "We have nowhere else to go."

Lu decided right then and there she would rather chop her hair off in shame than let Omera and the girl whom she assumed was Omera's daughter be removed from their home. They both had the same nose and brown eyes that belied a cleverness. 

Lu looked just like her mother, too. Lu and her mother spent what time they had had together mostly on the run. She could not allow that to happen here. _Light forsake me that walker needs to go…_ She made the promise to her Gods. She felt this may be why she'd dreamt of the last time she saw her mother in person…

"Sure you do! This is a big planet!... I mean; I've seen smaller." Cara said to the crowd. She knew she wasn't presenting the strongest argument.

"My grandparents seeded these ponds. It took generations!" the long-haired farmer shouted again. 

"I understand. I do… But there's only two of us." Cara tried again.

" _Three_ of us." Lu said, making sure she sounded way more confident than she felt inside. 

"Three of-" Cara started to correct herself. 

"Two." Mando stated flatly. He crossed his arms and turned the black void of the T visor to Lu. "You're injured and there's no bacta here. Regardless of how good you are with that staff, that makes you a liability." His tone oozed with "and don't fuckin' argue with me" that made Lu's hackles rise. _Don't you fuckin' tell me what to do_ she internally complained. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in defiance. 

"There's at least 20 of us here!" another voice came from the crowd. 

"I mean _fighters_. Be realistic!" Cara sounded incredulous. She couldn't believe farmers wanted to take on an imperial walker. 

"We can learn" the other, short haired man from the night before said. 

"Yeah! We can!" said the long haired one, enthusiastically. "Give us a chance." 

"Please." said the other again. 

"I've seen this thing take out entire companies of _soldiers_ in matter of minutes." Cara pleaded. If it wouldnt give Lu away she'd tell them _And I've seen one person take out an AT-ST with the right weapon._ She stopped herself from being a smart ass, kept her mouth shut.

"Were not leaving." Omera spoke again, her voice low. She was scared but she looked determined to face whatever came. 

"You can _not_ fight that thing!" Cara half stated, half almost-pleaded. 

"Unless we-" Lu started but cut herself off as she and Mando spoke at the same moment. 

"Unless we teach them how." The Mandalorian said the full thought aloud. Lu figured it made more sense to come from him, he didn't know what she was fully capable of. And Cara and the village whole hadn't seen anything from her except… _Being carried like some poor damsel who couldn't handle sleeping a night in a sled. Augh…_

Mando turned to her again, his body language almost bewildered, and perhaps a little amused. Lu gave him a chuckle and half a smile. After a moment he stiffly nodded at her again. _Why is he always so surprised by me? Seriously._

A few hours later, night fell. Mando, Cara, the kid, and Lu all sat at the front of the barn where before night fell they had agreed to help the village... Cara was given her own smaller lodgings next door. The air was still warm, sounds of night bugs echoed in the air. Warm yellow light emitted from lanterns above them. 

The kid was fighting sleep in her lap, snuggling into the roughspun of her borrowed shirt.

Her body still ached, but her stomach was still contentedly full and strangely her spirits high despite the news of the walker. She'd felt better once it was clarified that this walker was being operated by the Raiders. Not Imps. The three of them had spent these last hours planning what to do. Lu stifled a yawn that followed Cara's. 

"Well. I'm bushed. See you three in the morning." the dark haired Rebel said, stretching as she stood from her seat opposite the open doorway of the barn. "Not looking forward to training villagers to be soldiers in a couple days…" she said idly. 

"They wanted it, so." Lu offered trying to put a positive spin on it for her. "Maybe it won't be that bad?" Cara chuckled at that. 

"Sure. Sure. G'night you three." Cara said idly waving at them as she walked toward her hut, dark armour fading into the night. Lu, the kid, and Mando left to themselves. It dawned on her that this was the first time they'd been alone since landing on Sorgan aside from an hour here or there when other things occupied either one or both of them. 

Now that the night was thick and everything quiet, the village mostly asleep, stars were out decorating the deep inky blackness of the sky, she found her peacefulness being encroached upon by what she'd heard earlier. Of what Mando had said of his childhood and being taken in by The Mandalorians.

She must have misheard perhaps, but she couldn't be sure… she'd never heard of Mandalorians taking in children to adopt their ways. At least, not in modern times. The old Way of The Manda'lor must be what he's referring to… she had thought that Mandalore had abandoned those ways, part of that shift was why the Duchess Satine Kryze had been elected and ruled before and during the Clone War, until her untimely death… But anxiety and guilt of hearing a part of his story not meant for her, smashed together with a desire to understand better kept her voice in her throat. She shifted uncomfortably, from as much continued physical discomfort as the internal one. Though the cooling poultices and keeping herself moving has helped relieve her pain. 

The kid's big dark eyes were half lidded and he was fussing, sensing her mood. He was trying to fight sleep. She sighed and stood, beginning to rock him, instinctively. She didn't know if this would soothe him, but it helped with plenty other races in the galaxy. Mando watched her carefully, looking up from where he sat apart from her on the bench. Arms crossed in front of him, slightly leaning back. 

"Time for bed for this guy…" she said idly. The Mandalorian nodded silently. Lu got the feeling he had something on his mind. 

He became slightly unsettled as Cara left. She couldn't place exactly why but she bet it had something to do with having to share an unknown space with a stranger. She _had_ tried to slash his throat when she startled awake yesterday. And maybe a dash of the villagers shacking him up with her instead of her and Cara sharing lodgings… him carrying her into town probably gave the wrong impression and maybe he was realising that just now? He cut the breath of silence and surprised her by speaking unprompted. 

"My apologies." He started, sounding half unsure of himself. Uncomfortable."...for the sled. On Nevarro." the metallic ring of the modulator didn't hide that he was being serious, even if a little strained. Is _this_ what's on his mind? 

"Ohhh." She said aloud. Unable to help being half-heartedly snarky to tease him. Trying to sound casual and light hearted. She rocked the baby more, he was beginning to let himself fall asleep. She lowered her voice so as to not impede the process… 

"Well. Given the _situation_ it's not as if it happened on purpose. You still got us out of there. Of which, I _am_ thankful." She looked to the T visor deliberately and cracked a half smile. "Besides uh. I'm sorry for trying to slash your throat on your own ship? I… was surprised." she let her tone express the slight embarrassment she felt about that. 

"Ohhh. Right." he rasped, voice quieting as well, echoing her slightly snarky-teasing tone. Stretching his legs out and crossing his large brown boots at the ankle, tilting his helmet up, and then nodding at her. "I forgot about that… But I wouldn't call us even." He paused, his tone dropping at the end. Lu was going to say it was even enough to her, but he continued.

"I'm undamaged. You on the other hand?... Not so much." He finished. Lu didn't know if her ears were failing her, he sounded so genuinely not happy with himself for tossing her around. Actual remorse. As if he'd had much of a choice. 

"Oh, you saw that did you?" She chuckled. Yeah it was bad, but still just bruising and meat damage. Nothing was broken. But he's a damn _Hunter_ . He's seen _way_ worse. Done way worse, no doubt. He stiffened, uncomfortable. It appeared he maybe took it harder than she did? _How odd…_

"Look, Mando…" Lu continued, it felt strange to refer to him by his given moniker, but she felt it important she say it aloud. Though it still took a second to work through all the weird emotions flooding her as she stood there rocking, for all intents and purposes, _his_ strange green baby. 

"Don't sweat it. I said I've had worse, and I meant it. Nothing broken, no blood loss. _And_ got us all the hell off Nevarro? Nothing but wins all around from where I'm standing." She smiled at him a bit. She still had reservations in the back of her mind warning her to not get too friendly… But after hearing what she had earlier she felt she needed to offer a kind of truce.

He sat in stunned silence, T visor staring up at her giving no clue of what he was thinking. His body language, as usual, the only indication. She idly wondered what he looked like under his helmet. What colour was his hair? His eyes? Instead grey metal and brown leathers in human shape, before her. He was human, she knew, what she could glean of his _song_ told her at least that much. The rest, a mystery. At first it had been intimidating but a couple days later and figuring him out at least this much, has changed her mind on him, not entirely, but enough. He may be a bounty hunter, but he was a Mandalorian; born on their soil or no.

Lu pulled her gaze down to the green skinned infant finally deep asleep in her arms. _He found you. You found me… Whats your deal, little guy?_ She felt so calm upon landing on Sorgan, after the initial shock of waking up post-Nevarran chaos.

This kind of _Calm_ was something that she'd never really felt before. But, she keeps being told by a strange familiar-unfamiliar voice and by memories of her mother to _trust her feelings_ lately, and that was something she couldn't ignore. One of the lessons she had been taught early, but had only had it jarred to her current mind… _when you have taken a path, made a choice. If you are met with calm, you are going in the right direction. Be mindful of your feeling._ Trust _them…_ She'd spent her whole life never feeling like she was in the right direction up until two days ago. 

After a moment Mando sighed heavily, sounding tired. Sounding unsure of what to say or do next. He looked down at the rough hewn planks of the porch of their temp lodgings from where he sat. Lu decided she'd give him a moment, something seemed like it was up with him just as much her. She needed space a second herself.

"The kids asleep" she whispered to the beskar'd mystery of a man. "Gonna tuck him in." and she quietly and slowly walked in the barn, to the farthest makeshift room, the villagers had put a small cot here next to an adult sized one. It was laden with blankets for the little ones comfort. As gently and smoothly as she could, lay him down. Waiting a moment to make sure he didn't wake. His big long ears dropped from his body gone limp in his slumber. Lu couldn't help but smile. He was a _special_ kid, for more than just being something no one's ever seen before…

She straightened and turned, Mando had apparently stood from the bench, his shoulder pauldron poking out from the doorframe, but his back to her. His Cape moving gave away that he'd turned, trying to be casual. But he'd been watching. Lu sighed, unable to blame him for being suspicious for the baby's sake. It's a baby; and if she hadn't been able to effectively be _"told"_ by the kid himself that he was in no danger, she would still be suspicious of Mando. And he didn't have that for her. She walked back outside, Mando leaning up against the outside wall. 

"I'm no danger to him." She offered as she positioned herself off to his left. The ominous black T following her. He sighed and then looked out beyond the light of the lanterns. 

"I know." the beskar helmet admitted. Mando's deep voice sounding strained. She smirked and looked over to him. "Old habits…" He offered, distractedly, with a shrug.

Didn't seem like the whole answer to her but she had her own issues worrying her. Lu breathed deep, the need to admit what she'd heard coming to the forefront of her mind again, nagging. In the quiet that was growing between them, Lu finally got brave enough to use her voice. _Better sooner rather than later…_

"Uh. Look I'm-I'm not trying to pry and I wasn't-" God's damn her tongue suddenly feeling like it didn't want to work. She took half a breath and steadied and tried again. "Earlier today, I had barely woken. Enough to hear…" _Gods be good just admit it._ "To hear what Omera asked you… About-about your childhood." She was frustrated with herself.

Lu wasn't normally one to trip over her words but his story was too close to hers. She didn't realise till right now that she needed _someone else_ to know they weren't alone, like she had needed; Still _needs._ They weren't the only people who had ever lost their parents in the Galaxy, Lu knew… But she couldn't help herself. 

"Is that what's bothering you?" He was trying to control his voice but he sounded slightly shocked but not angry. Lu felt a strange relief. 

"Uh... I mean. Yes?" She turned and looked at him, shrugging. The fabric of the borrowed roughspun tunic moving with her. She kept the cuffs of the sleeves pulled up to her knuckles. " _Omera_ asked you. That… That wasn't for me to know." She took a breath. "My people earn others stories, We-we don't _ask._ It's a mutual exchange. Didn't feel right learning we… We have that kind of _loss_ in common, that way. Wouldn't be right to stay silent about it." Lu managed to tumble out.

It was risky directly mentioning _her people_ but she needed to be as honest as she could. She leaned against the outer post of the porch that supported the small awning covering the adjacent open window. Studying the porch boards before looking back up at him. She brushed a piece of dark blonde hair from her face, unused to having these sections free. 

The Mandalorians posture was stiff. He was looking right at her and Lu swore the black T shaped void could see right through her. Thick arms crossed in front of the beskar of his chest plate. His presence felt like it was _pulling her_ in. She couldn't have ignored him standing there even if she wanted to. He seemed so large, even though there wasn't anything too remarkable about his frame. The ancient metal of the Mandalorians reflected the warm light of the lanterns, taking on a golden hue. This man stood out against the inky darkness of the surrounding night, a strange humanoid beacon. She felt something she hadn't felt in a long time, staring back at him. Something in Lu _stirred._ She deliberately paid it no mind and mentally told it to go skulk back where it came from. Lu found a lump caught in her throat, needing to go on. But needing to solidify her resolve. 

"It's alright." Mando spoke after a hefty pause. His voice coloured with things Lu couldn't make out; she let her mouth run before she lost what she needed to say. 

"I lost them both. My father left, never returned. Id heard later he had died… My-my mother-" her voice cracked with emotion but she recovered quickly, continuing on before her voice gave out, "My mother died by the hands of the Empire when I was twelve…I didn't really have anyone else." Airing that after all this time was like ripping heavy, dusty window coverings open to the daylight. Felt _right._

"You… You didn't have to tell me." Mando answered, his metal veiled voice sounding sad, but full of a kind of awe and respect? She was too preoccupied with her own feelings to sort his out. 

"A story is owed a story in return. It's… important. Like your Creed. I don't need to understand it... But I respect it anyway." She offered in an attempt to explain. She fiddled with the fabric of her head wrap, staring down. Mando had his visor locked to her.

"... Thank you." Mando's voice was soft. _Warm._ And she wasn't mishearing it. 

He sounded like he would honour her story, respect it. His body language read he was surprised, like he wanted to say more still. She half smiled at him again. She absolutely didn't expect him to respond like that. _This one is certainly full of surprises. No hunter like I'd ever known._ And that made all the difference to her, not that Mando needed to know. 

"Now we're even, hm?" she asked, shifting back to a lighter tone. 

"... Yeah. We're even." He looked back down, his tone sounded strange, a tangle of emotions he was trying to convey and trying to hide all at the same time. 

Strangely, he seemed to relax some at that too, regardless. Lu deliberately made herself look out into the dark village around them so she wouldn't find herself staring at him. She was drawn in by the warm glow reflecting off that armour of his; moths to flames. She tried to shift focus away from him but every thought came back _to him_ . His strange arrival in her life has dug up things in her she thought she'd long left dead and learned to live without. And somehow a part of her felt it was _supposed_ to be this way, as frustrating as that was to her, because it was still a mystery as to _why_. Lu yawned, covering her face with the back of her hand. Silence stretching between them but it wasn't feeling as awkward and strained as before. 

Lu was getting tired, even though she'd slept most of the day. But her body needed rest in order to repair the bruising, and her mind needed rest, too. _So much_ had happened in such a short time and she felt like she was barely keeping up.

Looking up to speak again, she came to a halt when she found him already looking at her; Lu caught in the dead center of that black T. He adjusted, shifting quickly. Had she just caught him staring? The idea of it caused a ripple in her again. _Light forsake me. Don't._ She internally commanded herself. 

"Busy couple of days ahead… Should go sleep." he choked out, stiffly returning to staring at the darkness out beyond the lantern lights. His body looked like he was a loaded spring wound tight. Lu nodded, walking over, pausing at the doorway to look at him before entering. He kept his gaze fixed on the surrounding darkness. 

"Yeah… Goodnight, Mando." Lu stepped inside and made her way to her makeshift room, where she had awoken earlier. She let the bolt of cloth drop to cover her sleeping area; Omera had been so kind and thoughtful, hanging bolts of textiles to help make the barn more of an actual living space. 

  
She slipped into her small cot and listened to the _songs_ of the planet and its life around her, and tried to sleep.


	8. The Sword Dancer

Cara and Lu had both been right. The farmers were enthusiastic to learn, but were no soldiers. Cara got frustrated, Lu would come over and good cop/bad cop to help her get them into gear. 

Mando spent most of his time prepping others with blasters, and lessons; organizing the barricade teams. Omera surprised everyone with her prowess with a rifle. She was an absolute crack shot and Lu couldn't help but beam at her. Mando was clearly impressed too. 

"You're amazing!" Lu couldn't help but say from where she was with Winta, Omera's daughter, behind them. Omera turned and nodded proudly, then shyly nodded at Mando, who nodded back. 

The second morning, Mando had asked Lu if she could shoot. She'd spent most her first day with Cara having to play good cop. 

"No." She said with a shrug, watching Winta and the other kids play with the child after breakfast.

Mando seemed surprised by that. Blasters weren't uncommon amongst her people, but Lu had never bothered to take the time to be proficient. She took a sip of the cup of hot tea in her sleeve-covered hands. Today's tunic was similar to yesterday's, Omera lending her items while her own clothes still hung after being washed yesterday. Lu'd absently thought she'd rather a cup of kaf, but none was to be had. But, the tea was still better than nothing. 

"You should learn." Mando said, back T void watching the child intently. Lu looked over her shoulder at him and smirked, raising a blonde eyebrow.

"Perhaps. Depends on how much I have to keep Cara from losing her shit today." She intoned wryly. Mando made an amused sounding huff. Not a laugh, not a chuckle; just a single almost-grunt of an expulsion of air. Seemed just right for a man of such few words… Though he's more relaxed than he had been when they'd arrived. Lu took a sip of her tea, looking back out to the village. 

"I mean generally. Not just for the raiders." He clarified.

"Maybe, if there's time." She said, deliberately being vague. He was obviously not wrong, but she was starting to not trust herself. She found it too easy to forget he wasn't just a Mandalorian. He was a bounty hunter. And hunters couldn't be trusted. 

The village was already mostly awake and moving about. She and Mando both stood in silence a moment in the morning light. Each on either side of the door of the communal hut they shared. The grasses sparkled from the dew that was quickly evaporating. Birds were singing from the tree line, beyond where the wooden barricades were slowly being erected.

To Lu, everything would be perfect, aside from the part where she couldn't stop being annoyed at herself… Oh and they were preparing for a small scale war against the Raiders. That too. 

The third and final day of preparation she was starting to feel calluses on her hands again. It felt right. Her lungs burned with effort she hadn't exerted in a while; Her back was sore, still, but now she was feeling the familiar burn of using muscles for more than just dancing. Muscles she forgot she had, even, not having kept up with any training in a long time. 

Today, however, she was trying to avoid Mando. Getting up early and leaving the barn to go help Omera with preparing breakfasts. Staying busy kept her mind from wandering. Lu had looked around the first day and discovered lodgings were maxed out, and mentioning anything to Cara about sharing a hut or swapping would only bring unwanted questions. So she was stuck; And that made nighttime the worst. Sleep, turned out, wasn't much of an escape either. 

A thin sheet of sweat covered her as she woke suddenly, her body forcing her mind awake. Outside the sky was still navy, a streak of bright crimson hinting the sun would rise soon; But instead of a strange vision of her past, Lu dreamt of wrapping her legs around a strong brown leathered waist. Naked breasts pressed against a cool beskar chest plate, her iridescent fingernails gripping the dark wool of his tattered cape. Yellow and black leather gloved hands and beskar vambraces tangled in her braids; running thumbs down her neck, across her jaw and over her bottom lip. 

He rode between her thighs, in a steady furious rhythm; his entire being enveloping her as he thrust into her. The Mandalorian's raw, strangled moans in her ear mixed with the metallic rasp of his laboured breathing was  _ ecstasy _ . Beskar bit into the flesh of her thighs;  _ heat  _ spread through her and she thought she was going to scream. A Mythosaur skull emblazoned above his helmet, white-hot flames reflecting off the ancient ore. 

But when she opened her eyes, nothing but the quiet stillness of a sleeping village met her. She listened as she calmed her breathing, desire and need still coursing through her, refusing to let her go. Lu wasn't above rolling over and moving her hand beneath her pants, between her legs, sliding a finger over and into herself; it had all felt so real to her dream-self that it took no time, muffling her pleasured breaths into her pillow until she climaxed and finally relieved the storm that woke her. 

Lu decided to eat with Omera that morning, too, after helping prep and cook. And she casually managed to get Cara to agree to head right over to the makeshift training yard and get the farmers soldiering early. 

Today at least, a few of the farmers had seemed to have caught on. Caben, the long haired farmer impressed her some and despite a rocky start, was improving quickly. Lu was not sure of how his resolve would hold once fighting started. But all the farmers were determined to protect their home. Lu and Cara were having them spar before lunch while other teams of villagers moved about, all doing their assigned work. 

"Again, Caben. Don't look down this time. Keep your eyes on your enemy. Not their feet." She instructed the long haired, enthusiastic yet timid one. Lu was being brave enough to spar with them. She might be healing, four days and much improved. But, even like this, she was still fast enough that they were no danger to her. 

"Okay!" He came at her, jabbing straight. She blocked his spear with her sword-length stick, sending the tip of his wooden spear wide. He stumbled past her, but rounded quickly and tried again. Lu sidestepped and he swung back. She stepped back behind him, tapping him on his leg with the stick, and he fell. 

"You watch their feet and you'll lose yours." Lu added. Caben groaned. Some of the men laughed half heartedly. 

"Every one who laughs will be left with a reminder from my stick to support their brothers. You've all had two days of drills. Today is now or never." Lu said seriously. Pointing at them, they stopped, going quiet. Cara helped Caben off the ground. 

"Don't get cocky. You'll survive a lot longer if you remember every enemy you face could be the one that ends you." Cara said to them. Lu nodded, and called the next one up; she noticed the Mandalorian watching from a ways away where he was organizing the wooden barricade teams. None of the men laughed at each other the rest of the session. 

That afternoon she ate her lunch with Omera. Sitting and eating some krill, which wasn't Lu's favourite but it was what they had in abundance so she did not complain. Fruits and dry breads with cheese, too. One thing they did have here was good food. The two women sat at one of the tables in the central, communal area of the village. Villagers and children ran about. Winta, of course playing with the child not too far away. Chasing more frogs, green ears flopping as his little legs carried him. Cara and Mando were off continuing preparations, so Lu decided to enjoy the company of the woman who'd been helping accelerate her healing. 

"So you've been feeling better?" the long, dark haired woman asked her. 

"Very much, thanks. I didn't think it was that bad at first. But it's been a while since I've taken a beating." Lu realised that maybe sounded bad but she laughed. "Not to mention all the food and sleep, I'm feeling better than I have in a long time." She smiled at her. She and Omera both had become fast friends, same with Cara. It had been a long time since Lu had company to confide in. The two made small talk for a while, but eventually Omera turned pensive. 

"Can I ask you something… personal?" She sounded like she was half embarrassed asking. Lu had a feeling she suddenly knew where this was going, but answered anyway. 

"Yeah. Sure, what's on your mind?" she forced herself to sound casual. 

"It's-it's silly." She said, her tanned cheeks reddening.  _ Oh this is definitely where this is going _ … Lu internally braced for impact. Which is strange because this same conversation three days ago didn't need mental preparation. 

"No-no really you can ask. it's okay."Lu said, sounding way more casual than she felt inside. She felt the need to be brave for the both of them. Once asked she could tell Omera to go for it; and she could pretend the hottest, most vivid dream she'd ever had, starring The Mandalorian, never happened.

"You arrived with the Mandalorian… Ar-are you…?" She trailed off, implication heavy. There was a wholesomeness to how Omera asked, a full woman perhaps only a few years older than Lu, with a child of her own already… but farm life was a simple life. A small part of Lu envied her. But she smiled at Omera instead, making sure she was soft. 

"Nooo, no. I can see why it might be easy to get that impression given the uh.  _ Graceful _ entry I made. But no. We just… Ran into each other and I've just been rolling with it." Lu said, shrugging. It was true, even if not the whole picture. She rolled with it more for the kid, at first. Now? She found herself drawn to him. And Lu couldn't let herself entertain the idea.

"If you're sweet on him, you should tell him." Lu encouraged her. 

As afternoon was waning, final preparations were beginning. Omera was gathering the children to put them in the farthest back hut from the front line. The line of barricades wrapped almost in a semi circle around the village. Lu patrolled around the nearby huts, fully kitted with her staff in her hand, mind nagging. 

The plan was a good one. Solid. The only thing Lu couldn't get out of her head that these are Raiders. They don't necessarily have rules of engagement. The villagers bustled, but once where open conversations flowed, tense and low murmurs now ran. They were all nervous, and it was starting to invade her own mind and unsettle her. 

Taking a deep breath she let her footfalls echo in her ears, and then paused, grounding her boots to the earth. Lu the planet  _ sing _ to her, she  _ listened.  _ Closing her eyes, she tilted her face to the sky and invoked  _ Serenity _ … And something felt odd. Like there was a warning flag in the back of her mind… but the walker was the biggest issue and Cara and Mando did both feel confident in the plan. Why should Lu feel any different about it? It was solid. 

_ Trust your feelings.  _ The man's voice from her vision rang in her mind.

"Lu? Hey, Lu!" Cara was shouting for her, she and Mando were approaching. Lu realised she was just kind of standing there for a few moments. 

"You ready?" Mando asked her stiffly. Lu tried not to wonder if he noticed she'd been deliberately keeping herself busy to avoid him today. She fiddled with her head wrap, it felt strange to have the blonde parts tucked away after a couple days of leaving them loose; but she wanted to be fully prepared. 

"Yeah. Though, as a potential  _ liability.  _ I agree I'll stay with the kids." Lu said lightheartedly, at the end of the day, Mando hadn't been wrong. Even though doing drills and doing sparring exercises hadn't hurt, it hadn't helped her heal any faster, either. 

"You're seriously going to take a back seat?" Cara said, surprised and yet still finding a way to crack a shady read. Mando though, didn't seem happy. Conflicted more like. 

"You really  _ can't deal  _ with the greenhorns by yourself, can you?" Lu read back, chuckling wryly. 

"They lack disci-" the Dropper started to choke out. 

"Discipline. They lack it. I know, I  _ know _ . But Mando is right." Lu finished for her and nodded at him. He relaxed. "I'm stubborn. But I'm not stupid. You're right."

"Wow. Maybe you hit your head harder than you thought." Cara said, laughing. Lu rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but chuckle. Mando made an exasperated sound and shook his head. 

Lu kept in mind that Omera asked what she asked because she was as drawn to the Mandalorian as Lu found herself beginning to be; and that was enough to wrankle Lu to keep her in check. It made Lu want to stay out of the way. It was better that way. 

"I'll stay back, with the kids. Winta said she would feel better if one of us were there while Omera holds the line." Lu had been approached by the young girl during breakfast. Asking tentative questions about what was happening; her curiosity overriding her shyness.

"Sounds good." Mando stated flatly. Nothing in his tone implied being surprised at her admission. And he shouldn't. It  _ was _ the truth, just not  _ all _ of it. And he was probably suddenly thankful for adult supervision for his tiny, devious, long eared alien infant who had a taste for amphibians and getting into all kinds of trouble.  _ Gods, I really am a joke to you. Aren't I?  _

Darkness fell sooner than any one truly wanted it to.

"Hushh. Shhhh." Lu whispered to the children as they fidgeted in the strained quiet. "It'll be alright." they were scared and murmuring. The lanterns low and off the wall to allow them light but make sure the hut stays shrouded in darkness from the raiders. And the walker. She sat on the rough floor, her cloak pooled around her. The children watching outward, toward the frontline. 

"Alura? It'll be okay… right?" Winta asked her. Scared, but putting on a brave face for the other kids. Just like her mother, Winta was full of quiet determination. Lu felt like she was asking more if Omera would be okay. Winta kept the child in her lap, they were hardly apart these past three days. Lu told herself to thank the girl for keeping the troublesome green infant out of trouble while the adults prepared for battle. 

"Yes my girl, it'll be okay. Cara fought against the Empire herself. And I have seen the Mandalorian fight. It will be okay." She said calmly, making herself sound matter-of-fact and confident, but it was only to hide the fact something kept  _ pulling _ in her mind. Lu smiled, reaching over and patting the kid's head in Winta's lap. The Mandalorians child gave a plaintive whimper, but remained calm otherwise. 

The ground shook, and Lu could  _ hear _ the durasteel and hydraulics. A shakey, strained silence stretched over like a veil as thick as the night around them. The walker had made its entrance. 

_ Please. Gods be good. Let Mando and Cara take the walker quickly… Light, let it be done fast. Protect them.  _ Lu prayed earnestly. 

Heavy blaster fire ripped through Lu's senses. The menacing shriek of plasma and red light tore through a nearby hut, the ground shook. Lu went up to a crouch from where she sat. And not too far away from where she and the children were, war broke out.

The kids whimpered and ducked low. Lu put her finger to her lips and motioned for them to all get as low as possible; whispering quickly to get under tables and ledges, and stay away from the walls and windows. 

And the  _ pull _ that kept nagging Lu suddenly was becoming too much. Like an itch she couldn't scratch. The sounds of battle rang out from the front. She could  _ hear _ frustration and fear from the front. The walker perhaps not taking the bait? But that wasn't what the  _ pull _ was forcing her attention to. 

She needed to go outside. Something was wrong

"Winta. Everyone. Stay quiet, stay low." She said to them. "I have to go outside. To look." Lu didn't realise her voice was low and more serious than she had intended. Winta nodded silently, but her brown eyes were determined. The child looked up at her, quiet, yet with a knowing look. 

Lu grabbed her staff, and slipped out into the war filled night. 

To her left, the front line a ways away, a localised chaos. Angry roars of the Raiders and a blaster fire rang out. She could hear Omera's voice bark orders. The walker’s feet shook the ground and felt like an earthquake in Lu's legs. Ahead of her, the end of the semi circle of wooden barricades. Rough and menacing in the darkness, lit by blaster fire arcing across the night sky. Black shrouded forest. 

Lu called for  _ Serenity,  _ and she was answered. She breathed, and shut off her physical ears to sound. A steady calm flooded through her as Lu decided it would be better to face anything that might come armed to the teeth; her body still sore, she wasn't yet at full strength. And there was a hut full of the village’s children, and  _ the child _ at stake. 

She planted her feet, and uncoupled the plain durasteel pole of her staff's back half. The pole hitting the earth with a soft metallic ring that Lu  _ felt _ instead of physically heard. She  _ reached  _ out with her feelings, unscrewing the coupler of the durasteel sheath of the other half. Revealing an inner one in the shape of a straight, square-ended rectangle. She drew the long grey durasteel edges from the rectangular sheath, gleaming in the starlight.

Lu's vibro sword. A relic she fashioned into the heirloom hilt that was given to her by her mother their last day together. It had belonged to her grandfather; snuck away from Coruscant to her mother, in secret during The Clone War. And eventually, Enarra gave it to Lu. The hilt had been damaged in battle, and Enarra never used it again after that. Lu gave the old hilt new life to continue its legacy… And she knew it kind of worked, the emitter shielding was damaged so if one turned it on they're in for a nasty burn after a couple seconds. But for now it worked much safer as a vibro sword, the power it needed much lower. Even if wielding vibro swords were at a risk to the user as much the intended target… But Lu, she was trained to account for that. 

As Lu  _ reached out _ , violent intent reached back. Walking a few more steps toward the blackened forest, she took her stance. Right in the middle of the only pathway between krill pools, the wooden barricades coming to an end directly to her left. They'd either have to keep going to the next pathway, or go through her. And she was such an unassuming looking form she knew they'd take the bait. All she needed to do was buy time for the front line to down the walker and get to her. 

_ I can do this.  _ It felt right. She didn't have room for being apprehensive about it anyway.

The Raiders had a team broken off from the front and were trying to flank their line. And this was where they were going to try to breach it. Lu exhaled, steadying her nerves trying to bubble up, holding on to  _ serenity _ . She may be injured, but she had fought through worse, against more cunning foes… Lu just tried to not think about how long ago it had been. 

She inhaled, and two Klatooinian forms stepped out from the darkness and came to a surprise halt at seeing her short cloaked frame standing with a sword in her hand. Between them and their quarry. 

Lu exhaled, one shouted guttural noises she didn't understand to the forest beyond.  _ Calling for more?  _ She didn't care, she didn't hear it, physical sound gone in place of her  _ feeling _ her surroundings. She stared out at them, her mismatched eyes glaring. 

She dropped her cloak to the ground, and took stance. Planting her feet and raising her vibro sword. 

Inhale. She turned it on, and the durasteel  _ thrummed _ . Her arms immediately clenched from the feedback of force. This is why vibro blades were often small, the largest usually being axes. Swords were unwieldy from the vibrations. They were much more common in previous eras, giving way to more user-friendly means of violence. 

The Klatooinians saw her small frame take stance and decided they didn't need to wait for the rest of the Raiders

Lu exhaled, and everything slowed down. They rushed forward. 

And she rushed them, inhaling, one fired their blaster and she knocked away the bolt with her sword, sparks flying. The closer one didn't have time to react. She inhaled. 

Silver durasteel met flesh. And the flesh parted. The raider fell, a shower of blood carrying the momentum of her strike flying out in a sideways arc. The one with the blaster fired again, she reflected the bolt with her blade. Exhale. Closed the gap, running him through. She kicked his lifeless corpse off her blade. 

Her body was on fire and her lungs felt as if they were going to collapse as she sucked in air. The vibro sword was like a herd of rancors she was trying to control with only her two hands. Her shoulders and back screamed in protest. Forcing it out of her mind she focussed on the task at hand.

Heavy footfalls caught her attention amongst half a dozen smaller ones. 

The ground shook violently.  _ Jubilance  _ slammed into her from the front. The walker was down. But Lu was took focussed on the biggest Light forsaken Klatoonian she ever saw. He stood before her sizing her up, six others behind him. Raised his terrifying broad bladed sword with a ninety degree angle hook at the end. If Lu got caught with that, she's done. 

_ And here I was, thinking Navarro was bad…  _

He pointed it directly at her and then rushed. She inhaled, and ran at him as well, vibro sword high again. He swung down from overhead; terrifyingly fast for one such his size. She managed to deek left and swung backhand, risking the extra difficulty of wielding the vibro-sword in her right hand alone. Exhale. The rectangle end of the blade found flesh of the Klatooinians shoulder, but only a surface wound. It only served to piss him off. 

The big one did an about face while Lu ducked and avoided a sword swung from one of the smaller six; in a fluid motion she spun and deflected two sets of single blaster shots from others. She  _ reached  _ and let her body flow into the rhythm of battle. She caught one of them in the mid section with the end of her blade and he crumpled, hitting the dirt. With one of the two blaster bolts she got lucky, and it deflected off her sword and hit one of the others. He dropped. The others were moving up. She dodged blaster bolts that felt like they were coming from everywhere. 

And then the ground disappeared beneath Lu's feet.

The big one grabbed her by her headscarf from behind and threw her back like she was a doll. Lu went flying, her headscarf ripped and stayed in his massive, meaty hand. 

She clipped the wooden barricade and hit the dirt, her vibro sword dropping and thrumming noisily against the ground; the impact against the barricade caught her on the same side she'd landed on her staff on Nevarro. But this was  _ much _ worse. This time, something was  _ definitely _ broken. Her world spun and the smell of earth and blood filled her nose; she coughed and sputtered. Her braids all come loose, tangling around her limbs. She was incredibly,  _ incredibly _ lucky he threw her by fabric instead of her hair. Not having the luxury of time to panic, Lu pulled herself together.

_ Gods, hear me. Light save me, see me through… Get up! Get your legs under you and get up!  _ She mentally rallied. She couldn't give up now. The walker was down… she breathed through, centering herself; she managed to stop her world spinning.  _ They will not pass this line.  _ She promised. Calmer breathing was easier, not so deep. Deep breaths sent a sharp, shooting pain through her entire chest; she prayed any broken ribs didn't end up puncturing a lung. With no bacta here, that would indeed be a death sentence. 

Massive footsteps made their way towards her.  _ Serenity…  _ She refused to accept defeat. 

Inhaling, she ignored her body's protests to stop. The big raider was almost to her. If he reached her, Cara and Mando wouldn't likely find much of her left. She  _ listened.  _ He was getting close. Her sword was within reach but she'd have to move for it  _ and _ strike out at him in one go. One shot. 

She waited just a moment. He had to be right at the right spot otherwise she wouldn't get a solid blow. She willed herself to be calm, ignore her pain. There was no affording an error. 

_ Trust your feelings.  _

_ Now!  _ And Lu moved. She lunged up closing the distance to her sword, a humanoid spring, plucking it off the ground. And with a great cry, two-handedly swung up, as the big raider was swinging his broadsword down. Her blade slashed him pectoral to shoulder, skin and meat parting in a spray of viscera. Lu carried her momentum forward; going single-handed again, falling on her knees and sliding between the big raiders legs, slicing his right leg clean through calf meat to the bone. His broadsword hit the ground not far from where her head had been half a second before. The spray of earth and an angry roar barely registered to her. 

Continuing her momentum she straightened and stood, turning back in one smooth motion. Bringing both hands to the hilt again to put every ounce she had left in her into the strike. Her sword following in an arc of bloody intent, white braids flying out behind her. Lu cut him across his back and he fell into a roaring bloody pile, tumbling over his own sword, facedown in the bloody, torn up grass. It happened so fast and required so much effort that she stumbled and fell to her knees. Planting gloved hands down so she didn't collapse to the earth completely. Vibro sword thrumming viciously next to her. 

_ Hearing  _ Mando and Cara and the other farmers approaching; blaster fire rang out around her, Lu realised they'd made it. The last of the smaller Klatooinians dropping in heaps. 

_ "LU!"  _ Cara screamed for her, running. Mando following, blaster drawn, tattered cape billowing behind him. The big one wasn't dead, made like he was trying to get back up. Mando fired and what movement the raider had begun to make, ceased. Half the village had run up, they scanned the forest line for more as Lu sat on her knees, hands out in front of her, trying to breath and desperately  _ not  _ pass out. 

_ So much for the backseat. _ The worst of the pain was localised on her side. Her breathing shallow, she wasn't getting enough air but she  _ would _ pass out if she tried any deeper. She had to check her side. 

Lu reached a gloved hand up and gently touched. Excruciating pain shot through her, and her black gloved hand looked  _ wet _ in the dark night. Cara's boots were suddenly in her vision. She could hear Mando's footsteps as well, but everything was sounding far away. Lu let herself go as she felt Cara kneel down and grab her. 

The last thing Lu felt aware of was that her braids were out. She'd have a lot to answer for… If she didn't end up dead

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kickin' into high gear lol If you,ve made it this far, thank you!


	9. The Mercenary's Interlude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EDIT: 1/19/21 my Google Drive didnt sync some edits before I moved it over. woops! Nothing major just some extra atmospheric-sceney stuff and fixed a couple formatting errors.

“So, what you’re saying is that she’s not human?” Din asked, the kid in his lap. He'd seemed pensive after all the violence, needing to be close.   
  
“No, she’s Kibahrri. Well, at least partially, anyway. I don’t remember ever seeing a Kibahrr with hair that dark.” Cara answered him. They sat across the doorframe of the barn from each other, as had become the norm. It was the day after they fought their small scale war, and almost the whole village was up early to begin cleaning up the fallout. Fortunately, no one aside from Alura had taken much damage.

“I haven't seen one since I was a kid.” She finished.   
  
“On Alderaan?”He dared asking despite how sensitive it may be. But his intent was for information, not to open old wounds. Cara had given the implication at the tavern.    
  
“...Yeah. There was a group of nomad types that wandered out in the wilderness. But there were a few in the city, mostly street bards and fortune tellers; they kept to themselves. Secretive. But I wouldn’t miss that weird sparkle under the skin… explains the hand hiding and the headscarf.” She grumbled. “That white hair is a dead giveaway.”

Din nodded. The twists kept coming. 

Four days in her presence already had him certain there was something to Alura, Lu, that had to do with the kid; they often shared looks and spent long times in silence together; not that the kid "talked" but he seemed sensitive to moods, and especially sensitive to hers. There hadn't been much time aside from the occasional quick conversation between them during the preparations; strained, for Dins part. 

Lu, despite the occasional attitude, was easy to be around. Had an ability to take so much seemingly with stride; an ease to the way she spoke and laughed, conversed with people as if she'd known them forever. She was warm, patient and encouraging with all the children. Where Din likely would have grown tired with conversations mostly consisting of answering questions, she answered everything with the same care. The strange white haired woman had a casualness he envied. It made her all the more intriguing. 

However after watching her fight that Klatooinian, he had no doubt of the fact he'd underestimated her. And he was thanking the Maker he had de-escalated on Nevarro. The burst of speed she'd displayed was proof enough that when needed, she had the potential to be fatal. He and Cara had managed to pull themselves out of the krill pool and get over to her, alerted by the blaster fire, just in time to see her take the big one out… Not even mentioning the mystery as to how she found herself there? How did she know to meet the Raiders there? They had all considered themselves lucky that Lu had foiled their attempt to flank them. 

The fact she wielded a vibrosword alone was a matter of incredible skill. A particularly mean weapon that'd been around for almost five thousand years. And even if she didn't use the sword, enough speed behind the durasteel staff she hid the sword in, could be just as devastating… seemed to Din every time he had a question about her resolved, another one popped up. 

"Never heard of them." Din spoke truthfully, he'd never heard of a Kibahrr before. "My guess was Echani. White hair and vibrosword. Matches what I'd heard vaguely." Echani were Mid-rim dwellers who fancied the blades too but were extremely uncommon and he'd never seen one in the Outer Rim. Nor in any of his travels. 

"Yeah. No clue what that is." The Rebel Droppers voice dry and deadpan. After a breath she tentatively asked "What did Omera say?" 

"She's got two broken ribs. And more bruising to add to what she already had, but otherwise stable. Seems with enough time, sleep and food she'll be fine." He couldn't help the gravel in his voice. Couldn't help but feel some way about it. What way wasn't entirely apparent, if he was honest with himself. The child whined and stared up at him. 

"I can't believe how  _ fast  _ she moved." Cara's voice was low and gruff. "Really didn't expect that. She said she was capable and left it at that. But that seemed…" she trailed off. 

"Way more than just  _ capable _ ." he finished for her. "You never saw or heard anything about that?"

"No. I never met one personally, just had this one fortune teller in town and all us kids were told to stay away from... Alderaan was friendly and passificistic, but the Kibahrri were kind of quietly scorned." Cara took a breath and looked out unto the morning sun.

"A few remembered when they seceded from the Republic, and some remembered when Separatists attacked them during The Clone War; the Republic sent aid with the intent to win them over. But after, the Kibahrr apparently reneged on rejoining. A lot of people felt they used resources that drug out the conflict." She sounded like she hadn't thought about all this in a long time.

Din hadn't himself thought of the Clone War apart from his parents in a long while; but the details that didn't apply to Mandalore hadn't been necessary for him to learn after he had been saved. As seasoned as Din was, the Galaxy was a big place, with a long history. This was all news to him.

"By the time the Empire rose, they were supposedly wiped out, a few refugees here and there… And then, after what the Empire did… " she continued. Even all this time later, Cara was clearly being deliberate in not saying it out loud, but Din knew what she was talking about. He nodded to let her know he was still listening. 

"Well. I guess being from Alderaan myself I shouldn't be too surprised to see a Kibahrr. There's survivor's of all kinds." The Droppers voice got low and full of emotion as she talked about her home world, looking down at her feet. The Empire had done whatever it could to quash Rebellion, destroying entire worlds in their desire to stop it. Genocide after genocide in their wake

"What's your take? You think they duped the Republic?" Din was curious, politics were not interesting to him but Cara at least seemed to have an idea of things. 

"Don't really have one. They were no friends of the Empire, and apparently had hands in starting the Rebellion." Cara shrugged. Din couldn't help but huff a half-laugh at that. 

"Yeah. She's no friend of the Empire. That's for certain. " He said wryly, nodding into the dimness of the barn where Lu slept on her cot in the middle makeshift room. He and Cara both looked, and paused.

"... Sounds like she had her reasons for keeping it to herself, then." Din said, contemplating her secrecy. The kid made an affirming coo in his lap. Though it didn't answer the mystery as to what she had to do with the child, perhaps it would lead to one. 

"So, What's your plan now?" Cara asked. 

"Got lodgings, and the kids happy." He replied with a sigh, looking down at the two big brown eyes framed by those comically large ears. "The villagers have invited us, you included, to stay for as long as we need." 

"Sounds good to me." spoke Cara. Din silently agreed. 

Over the next three days, both of them helped clean up and repair the damage. Disposing of the Klatooinians bodies first in the list. Omera and Winta both stayed at the barn to mind Lu and the kid, while they worked during the day. 

Omera was warm and beautiful, but often seemed like she wanted to say something when they found themselves in each other's company. She had been more than accommodating and always helpful, anticipating needs. Helping improve the barns living conditions for them, leaving food and drink for him to eat in private.

_ Her husband had been a lucky man.  _ Din couldn't help but think to himself. 

"I've changed her dressing. It looks a lot better today" Omera said, as she was ushering her daughter, heavy lidded with tiredness, out the barn. It was long past dark and they should all be sleeping. Omera whispered in her ear and sent the girl towards their home only a huts distance away. The night was bright, full moon in the sky. The lanterns they had taken down for the fighting had all been replaced. The village aglow in a warm yellow light. 

Tonight, Omera and Cara had sat together quietly talking with Winta and the kid inside, while tending to Lu. He had sat outside to let them work on her care in privacy. By now, Cara had already left for her own hut and sleep. 

"Any idea when she'll wake?" he was unsure how neutral he ended up sounding, standing outside with the dark haired woman. 

"No. We'll have food for her when she does. Easy things, plenty of water. She'll be thirsty, especially. We'll give her another day, nothing's changed and she has no infection. Everything seems okay." Omera smiled softly at him. 

"Thank you. Again. For your kindness." He couldn't help feel tense around the beautiful widow; his words feeling clumsy. She was about his age, maybe younger. It was hard to tell, she had such a serene agelessness to her. 

"It's no problem at all. We're all very thankful for your help. Everyone hopes Lu heals up fast…" She trailed off. Din nodded. A silence spread out between them and he wasn't sure what to say or do now. He stared out into the night. 

"Mando…" something in Omera's voice drew his attention back over to her. She was looking directly at him. Taking a step forward. "I'd like to… _ Thank _ you. Myself." her suntanned skin blushed across her face. The implication of what she'd meant hung heavy in the night air. 

He suddenly felt like prey caught in a trap. She was offering herself but he couldn't accept, and not necessarily because he was averse. In fact his body outright nearly had the  _ opposite _ reaction, he would have absolutely taken her up on the offer; had they both been ten or so years younger and he hadn't decided the Creed came first in his life… and if he were honest with himself, he had nothing to offer her but a life on the run busting bail jumpers. That was no life for a soft farm woman, didn't matter that she was good with a blaster rifle. It took a lot more than a good shot to be able to live in his line of work in the Galaxy. He didn't belong here, amongst all the peace. The only time he felt like he wasn't out of place was when the Raiders and the walker were blowing everything to hell around him. 

A week ago he wouldn't have even needed to think about this… and he couldn't help but feel disappointed in himself for allowing himself to be in these positions that test his resolve. He stood there, with her, on the rough porch boards of the barn. The sounds of the peaceful Sorgani night the only thing breaking the silence that hung between them. 

"I can't." He wasn't sure about his tone, but he tried to not sound as conflicted as he felt. Omera looked sad, though for herself or him, he couldn't be certain. His chest felt tight and his body was telling him to accept. 

"The Creed?" she asked after a heavy pause. 

"The Creed." He answered. At the core of it, that was the truth. He didn't need to burden her with details. Or allow any room for 'what ifs' with said details. His mind was made. 

She nodded, wished him a good night with an understanding smile tinged with sadness, and left him standing there alone. He stayed out there sometime contemplating the strange direction his life had taken. This week he was more a mercenary than a hunter, and spent too much time being torn between being just a man and being a Mandalorian for his liking. 

He tried to sleep, laying on his cot in the darkness of the barn. The kids tiny occasional soft snores next to him on his own cot breaking the stillness. When Din eventually did sleep, it was fitful. And full of dreams of touching  _ skin _ . 

He woke in the morning, stiff. The only downside about being in the village was the lack of secure privacy so he could remove his helmet, and armour, more often. He was used to it, but sleeping in the helmet after a week solid was getting old, even for him. The only time he'd allowed himself was to eat and drink and to change his leathers and underclothes from extras he'd brought from the ship. Quickly and usually before sleeping, under the cover of darkness. 

He sat up, boots on the floor and looked down to his right to where the kids cot would be. It was empty. Panic blasted through his sleep addled brain. 

_ Where'd he go??  _

He jumped up with a start. How late was it? The sun was up and it wasn't particularly cool, the village sounding somewhat active outside. Normally the kid wakes  _ him _ up, crawling up and over him; making noise and putting his little three fingered hands on Dins helmet. He stood and marched out his section of the barn, pushing the drapery aside. 

"Don't walk so  _ loud."  _ Lu's voice quietly rasped from behind the bolts of fabric that closed off her makeshift bedroom; sounding absolutely unimpressed. He came to a halt. 

"You're awake." He said to the fabric wall, unable to help the surprise in his voice. 

"And the kid is asleep. So hush."

"He's with you?" he dropped his voice low. 

"Yes. Bring water." He continued out to the front area of the barn. Omera had left a pitcher here, and cups. Din grabbed the pitcher and a single cup, filling it as he carefully walked. To not spill, but to also to be as quiet as possible. 

Cup in hand, he reached past the fabric and held out the cup. 

"Come in, can't reach." her voice hoarse, barely audible. He was slightly uncomfortable at the thought of entering her 'bedroom', even being invited. After a breath he ducked and stepped in. 

Lu sat partially propped up with the extra pillows and bedding Omera had stuffed behind her. Her dark blonde fringe and front sections of hair a stark contrast against the brilliant white of her long braids that coiled at her side, one down behind her ear. A thin blanket covering her to her waist, another of a borrowed tunic above; he could spy a hint of bandages at her collar bone; for which he was thankful, he hadn't known what state of dress she'd be in. She looked tired, but it wasn’t as bad as when he woke her on the Razor Crest.

The kid was nestled, deep asleep on her chest and under her chin. Her left arm resting across her body, under his little legs. One brown canvassed arm slung around her neck, roughspun fabric in his little hand. Din made an effort to ignore the strange feelings the scene gave him; dust catching the morning light streaking through cracks of roof and wall boards like warm golden sparkles. Din passed her the cup of water that she took in her free hand; her fingernails glimmered in the light. She drank quickly and motioned for more with the empty cup. 

He pulled up the chair that had her cloak draped across the back and sat. Refilled the cup, gave it back. She drank, and asked for more. She sat after a moment, having downed five cups; he put the pitcher on the stand next to her cot. Lu moved slowly, whether from injury or so as to not disturb or spill on the kid, he couldn't say. He bet on both. 

"Thanks…" she croaked. "Needed that." her face was tense, uncomfortable. She kept looking down at her bed covered legs, seeming unsure of herself, which took him aback. Lu had not struck him at all as a person who  _ could  _ be unsure. 

"He heavy?" Din asked, thinking maybe the kid should go back to his own bed. He might be tiny but he also probably wasn't helping. 

"Nah he's okay. I'd be hurting whether he's there or not." She paused. Another silence stretched between them for a moment. "I'm surprised you're not asking a multitude of questions right now." She eventually said, her tone dry. He sat back in the chair, trying to show he's at ease. 

"... Cara recognized your hair. Filled me in a little." He said carefully. She managed to crack a half smile and gave a small huff, but still didn't seem like she could look at him. Some of her dark blonde hair in her face, dark circles back under her eyes again. 

"Was worried about that." Lu's tone was dry and guarded. 

"Don't." he said plainly, waving a gloved hand. Trying to alleviate her discomfort about the situation. She looked at him now, clearly in some surprise, a tangle of emotions in her blue and green eyes; trying to not think about how looking at her now was making him feel.   
  
"Politics don't concern me…" he trailed off. Feeling like he could use this as an avenue to figure out the mystery between her and the child, at the least. 

"What does though, is how you knew the Raiders were going to flank us." Her surprised expression turned into guarded shock. But he continued before she decided to cut in like usual. 

"I've seen… some things I can't explain. Seen _the_ _kid_ do things I can't explain. Now you've gone and done a thing I can't explain and I'm starting to wonder if it's not all related." Din finished, still being as careful as possible with his words, but he couldn't help but point at the floor for emphasis, his other hand on his knee. Tone casual. Her guarded shock seemed to shift to a kind of surprised relief again. Her body relaxed, Din hadn't realized she'd been _that_ unsettled. 

"You're… You're not wrong." She confirmed, not hiding her concern of how he may react to that. He nodded, then remembering that she'd said a  _ story is owed a story _ . He looked down at the floorboards and sighed. He poured her another cup of water and held it out to her, and she took it. 

He quietly recounted the adventure of how he'd met the kid on Arvala-7. When he got to the mudhorn and the kids part in saving his skin, she no longer looked surprised. Just sat and nodded, sipping water. 

"Thank you. For… for telling me. I didn't know how much you knew about  _ that _ and I had to err on the side of caution." She said, taking a breath. Din sat and silently let her continue. 

"I'm like the child, but only in-in a small way. I have… abilities, though it's not the same…" Lu trailed off looking like she was finding a way to explain. "Have you heard of the Witches of Dathomir? Nightsisters, they called themselves." She asked carefully. 

"No." He replied, shaking his head. Sounded like some cooky spiritual mumbo jumbo to him. But he had to admit the spiritual mumbo jumbo had gotten real the past couple weeks. 

"My people were kind of… Opposite them. They could  _ tap _ into energies in the universe and use that power. They fell during the Clone War. As did the last of my people; we spread out what few remained, refugees…" She looked out and had a sad, far away look in her eyes. Din sat in silence, nodding with her words to let her know he was still listening. The kid still slept, looking content. 

"It's not something everyone could do, and there's kind of varying degrees… But to us, we uhm… hear it like music. We refer to it as  _ The Song… _ " She breathed deep, wincing silently. Clearly trying to navigate a lot internally while being physically in pain; though she also seemed like she was being very careful about how she framed what she was saying. Her thumb trailed the rim of the clay cup in her right hand, idly, contemplating. Din couldn't help but be drawn to the way her thumbnail caught the light. A faint iridescent flash depending on how it shone on her. 

"It-it permeates our culture; music and song is sacred… We wear five braids for the Five Priestesses of  _ The Song _ ; they each represent a state through which one can _ uh…  _ channel it?..." She paused to consider that but continued on, "Each braid has three sections, one for each  _ part _ of  _ The Song;  _ the Living  _ song _ , the Spirit's  _ song,  _ and one for us, as  _ The Singer _ . Not just as individuals, but as a collective, our lineage and history…" she trailed off, sounding exhausted and lost. Another silence stretched out between them. Morning light streaked over the three of them. 

Din was torn on what to do or say, now. He wasn't very versed in how to soothe this kind of situation; words felt pretty paltry when talking about the people you lost to genocide. Instead he sat quietly, taking in what she'd told him. He shifted in the chair, idly watching the kid asleep under her chin. Awash in a flood of weird feelings, hearing and seeing Lu like this, with the small green skinned, frogs-nightmare of an alien baby.

Din realized he now knew her far better than he had a week ago. Strangely, it felt like half a lifetime when he thought about it. The silence between them is not an uncomfortable one, though still weighty. After a time, Lu held out the empty cup to him. 

"But uh… if you're asking if I can lift mudhorns with my mind? No. No I cannot, sorry to disappoint." She lifted her gaze to him, cracking that smartass smirk, cutting the heaviness in the silence.   
  
"I could very well  _ eat _ one though." Her tone was wry. He couldn't help but huff. 

"You're a real damn comedian. You know that?" Din said ruefully, shaking his head. The Mandalorian had to admit she had a way of cutting tension. He was smiling under the helmet. Din took the cup and poured her more water after standing. 

He left her and the kid there, and went to go find them food.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	10. The High Priestess's Daughter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Diving deeper into some lore and connecting our protagonists~ Hope you enjoy!

_Well. That… Wasn't so bad._ Lu thought to herself as the Mandalorian departed the barn to get food. She might hurt, but she couldn't help but be filled with a contented peace. 

For once, everything went pretty okay. And waking up to find the kid snuggled up on her had been everything she'd needed. Those little arms around her neck helped her feel _at home_ in a way that she couldn't quite get a handle on. She lay her head back on the bedding shoved behind her, still so tired. 

_Weird he didn't mention anything though… Figured I was totally outed._ Lu thought to herself as her eyelids slid shut. _Must be because he wasn't born on Mandalore…_

Kibahrr and Mandalore had an interwoven history, though not always allies, they were hardly enemies. First encounter between their peoples was about a thousand years prior. The most recent, right at the end of The Clone War. In truth, it seemed that Kibahrri were more inclined to keep closer track of their history than Mandalorians, now and to Lu, anyway. A proof in the juxtaposition of their people; Her mother had told her 'Mandalore _makes_ stories, Kibahrr _collects_ them'.

One of Enarra Jinn’s longest friends and allies had been Duchess Satine Kryze. She had spoken of the late Duchess often, softly, warmly and with so much love; so much love that Enarra broke her own heart when she learned that she and Satine loved the same man. She had even been so bold as to risk the ire of the other House leaders, and returned to Coruscant to help aid Mandalore’s preservation of sovereignty when it was threatened during the first half of the Clone War. Made all the more complicated by Enarra having been made, unwilling, the High Priestess, a position of spiritual leadership. She never wanted it, but tradition and duty and a loyalty to her people made her choose that life over what would have made her happy. 

  
It was one thing for people to tell Lu that _politics don't concern them_ to make her feel better, which it did to a small degree. But it can’t erase generational guilt that stems from on-again off-again political affiliations that ended up causing civil war… more than once in the Kibahrr’s recorded history. And did nothing to alleviate the feeling that Lu was on a path now she wasn’t sure she wanted off of, even if seeming to now be painfully entangled with her family’s history. As if Enarra's own footfalls echoed into Lu's future.   
  
Lu drifted into a half-sleep; the small snores of the kid against her neck a beautiful, sleepy rhythm in her ears. Her body relaxing as the background noises of the village lulled her. The gentle _song_ of Sorgan cradling her. She felt like she was weightless, in that space between awake and asleep. Strangely, even the pain from her ribs healing was alleviated here.   
  


_“Let go of your attachments, little Luna.”_ That man’s voice again? From everywhere and nowhere again, rippling through her mind. Warm and noble.   
  


_“She’d want you to be happy.”_ _  
_ _  
_

_Who are you?_ And how did they know her by that name? Only her mother had called her that.   
_  
_

_“That_ is _how I know that name.”_ The voice sounded playful, almost. Like this man’s voice knew she would figure it out if she just thought about it long enough?   
  


_“Don't think._ Feel. _Reach out with your feelings.”_ His voice said again. Lu was starting to feel like she understood where this was going. She didn't want to go where this was going. _  
_ _  
_

 _I can’t-shouldn’t._ Lu felt fear. _  
_ _  
_

_“You did against the raiders. You have the answers.”_ The man's voice was so sure, so _warm_ and encouraging. She didn’t know this voice, but she was beginning to understand who it belonged to. But admitting it would come at an emotional cost Lu was unsure she could bare.   
  


_“You_ can _. You have starfire in your blood.”_   
  


Lu _reached._ And felt _love_ reach back. It was made of light and _life. Familial_ love. And Lu knew then, who this was.

"Hey, Lu? You awake?" Cara's voice broke through as the Dropper stepped past the drape. Bringing Lu's mind out of the half-sleep induced vision.

"Yeah...uh. Dozing. Kinda." She said, mouth feeling heavy around the words. The kid was down at her side, awake, playing with her braids quietly, but made a happy noise when he looked way up at Cara's impressive frame. Lu gingerly leaned her head back up and sat up, gesturing weakly for Cara to sit in the chair Mando had left at the bedside. 

"I'm sorry I tol-" Cara started. 

"Don't be." Lu smiled at the dark haired woman, cutting her off. Cara didn't need to apologize for anything. "it's okay. I was outed the second that asshole threw me by my scarf. You didn't." the Dropper relaxed, still looking sad. 

"... Why didn't you say anything at the tavern?" she questioned Lu eventually. Leaning over to put her big gloved finger in one of the kids little green hands. He made some content coos.

"It's… complicated. It's just generally… Uh, _troublesome_ whenever I get found out. Safer to keep secret." Lu tried to keep her tone casual. But it was true. Being the daughter of the half-blooded High Priestess who was thought to be the downfall of her people and also a criminal, and a traitor executed publicly by the Empire, came with its own risks.

"You're safe here, though." Cara offered. 

"I wish that were true… there's-there's no such thing as being safe for me, as long as the Empire has loyalists in the Galaxy; as long as people still distrust Kibahrri." her tone dropped at the end, though she gave Cara a sympathetic look. "But hey-" she winced, shifting "-I've made it this far. Not doing too bad for myself." 

"She said, with two broken ribs." The dark haired woman said, oozing sarcasm, crossing her thick arms across her chest. Rolling her eyes. Lu heard footsteps approaching, Mando being one, for certain. 

"Im serious. Had way worse." Lu retorted. 

"Good morning." Omera's voice came through the door, from behind the drape. Mando's footsteps stopped at the door. "Brought breakfast." She said as she walked past the makeshift drape-wall. 

The porridge, fruits and milk was seriously the best thing Lu had ever tasted. After breakfast and some idle chatter, Omera and Cara departed; Cara took the baby with her to pass back to Mando, outside. 

Lu lay back, her eyelids feeling heavy again now that her hunger was satiated. Her back and left side ached, but as long as she didn't breathe too deeply, it was tolerable. In truth, she wasn't sure why she wasn't in _more_ pain, but she wasn't about to think too hard about it. 

Lu drifted back to sleep. Feeling at peace. 

That evening, Omera brought Winta, and Cara joined Lu in the barn after dinner. Winta was asleep at Lu's side on the cot with the kid snoozing away, tucked in her arms. The warm glow of lanterns lit in the rafters of the barn above their heads. Mando had decided to go and take a walk to give them privacy, and likely himself some space. 

"He's been hovering around the barn while you've been bedridden." Cara said, her tone playful. "The kid doesn't seem to go too far either." Lu gave her a wilted look. Their voices low and hushed to not wake the kids. 

"The kid _is_ why he's hovering, Cara. Come on." Lu griped, sipping her water. Omera looked uncomfortable in her chair across from the Rebel, gone silent on the topic of the Mandalorian. Lu didn't take that for a good sign, she dared be brave and ask her. "... Omera, you okay?"

"... Yes. I'm fine" Omera's voice made it clear she wasn't that fine. 

"You don't sound fine. I can _hear_ it." She gave the suntanned farm woman a sympathetic look. She put her hand on the back of Omera's sunkissed one. Lu knew what it was like to suffer heartbreak. 

"You can tell us, Omera." Cara said gently, her rich voice barely above a whisper. 

"It's so silly… I don't even know why I'm so bothered by it…"She started. Taking a pause to collect herself. 

"It's not silly." Lu said, tone soft but serious. Cara nodded in agreement. 

"I… I took your advice…"Omera looked to Lu. "But the-he said… he couldn't because of The Creed." her face flushed. Lu couldn't believe how wholesome this woman was. She felt bad for her, allowing yourself to be vulnerable enough to be that open was not a place Lu wanted to ever be again. 

"Wait. _You_ want the Mando?" Cara blurted. Clearly surprised. 

" _Cara."_ Lu shushed her. Cara at least had the grace to look embarrassed. 

"Sorry." the Dropper said. "So, you guys really _aren't_ a thing, then?" turning back to Lu. 

" _Gods be good Cara._ No." Lu swore. She could strangle the Dropper; if Cara didn't have more than a foot on her, and she wasn't nursing healing ribs.

"I gave that up a long time ago." Lu blurted, flicking a braid over her shoulder where she sat up in the bed. Annoyed and caught off guard. 

"Gave it up?" Omera asked quietly. Lu sighed, she had gotten too flustered and went and ran her mouth. _Damnit, Cara._

"Uh. Yeah…" Lu said over the rim of her water cup taking a sip. Trying to answer but be dismissive.

"Spill it, Lu. Omera did." Cara was very quickly becoming her least favourite person at this moment. Lu couldn't help but have alarm bells go off in the back of her head. She didn't want to retread her past, as always, worried details could out her true identity… but, Cara was a Rebel-forged ally. And Omera, a farm woman on a backwater planet no one's ever heard of. Lu took a deep breath, wincing at the pain that reminded her to not do that. 

"In my line of work, trusting people enough to be vulnerable with them just… can't happen." She finally said, tone deadpan. 

"What do you mean?" Omera asked. It now dawned on Lu that the closest thing to a divey scum-ridden cantina on Sorgan, was the tavern a days travel from here. And that place was like a child's playhouse compared to some places Lu had entertained. 

"I'm… A singer. But not as _me_ , obviously. It's how I keep myself safer… The danger lies in the reaction to the discover of an _illusion._ Broken fantasy... and then also by how they react to _me_." Lu cast her gaze down, picking at a thread of the blanket covering her legs. Omera and Cara went quiet and pensive. 

Something welled up in Lu and she suddenly realized these women, the kid, and even Mando really were the first people to know her closer to her truest self than anyone else in nearly a decade. 

Even when the Empire fell at the forest moon of Endor, Lu knew that loyalists would remain. She would need to continue hiding if she wanted the ability to move about the outer rim safely. These women not only knew, but _didn't care_ about her lineage. Her Kibahrri blood just a happenstance of her person, and nothing more… and that was, in a way, special to her; So used to being rebuked or responded to with outright violence that even neutrality seemed like something so precious and rare. 

To fill the silence, Lu compulsively continued, feeling a solace with these new friends she'd found. Her voice kept forming words and they spilled before Lu could think to stop herself. 

"The first and only man I ever loved…" She breathed, bracing for impact upon the admission. "Ended up selling me to an upstart crime lord allied to the Hutts; a _rare_ Kibahrr singer got him a big deposit of credits… I was so young, and naïve. I-I trusted him a-and it nearly _killed_ me." Lu fought the tears that threatened to well up, her chest tight.

She hadn't spoken about that in a long time. Lu had spent her entire childhood feeling outcast from both humans and Kibahrr alike. Always stuck between both worlds, never really fitting in either. Too human for the other Kibahrr, too Kibahrri for humans. Didn't matter where they sought refuge, Alderaan, Jedha, Lothal, Ord Mantell, and a dozen other places Lu had either forgotten completely or simply never learned the name of. Even the last settlement on Yavin4 in the shadow of the old Maasaasii temple, nothing changed. Until Lu had met _him._

"... What happened?" Cara dared ask. Lu's fingers now gripped the thin blanket instead of just picking at loose threads. Tears filled her eyes. 

"I was barely an adult just passed my trials. Young and _alone_ . Last of my line _…_ I wanted nothing more than to leave and never return… A starship crash landed. My cousins and I were sent to the wreck for scavenge… We-we found a survivor." Lu's voice cracked but she kept going. "Brought him back, against the wishes of my cousins. They figured we should have left him to-to _die_ … " Lu swallowed. Unable to air that a part of her wished she had listened to them. After a breath she continued, unable to stop the flow of words now, like she's opened floodgates. 

"He was _so_ beautiful. I was instantly enamored…" She couldn't help a rueful huff. " _Outsiders_ weren't fondly looked upon by my people. Never had. And so of _course_ the cursed mixed-blood would be drawn to an outsider. Just like her _grandmother,_ just like her _mother._ Just like _always_ with our House. _"_ Lu almost spat the words.

"He was half Zygerrian, himself… Whisked me away off planet, we spent a few months enjoying each other. Then, when an opportunity presented itself… He got his _payday_ , and I got a broken heart… Bounty Hunter's only care about their credits." Lu managed to rub the tears from her face. Roughspun tunic sleeve felt scratchy. Digging up this skeleton was not what she had counted on happening tonight. But somehow, to Lu, it felt right. Just like before, when she told Mando of her own loss.

Lu truly had loved him. Since they were both of mixed blood she had felt like she found a kindred soul that understood her. He had promised her everything, swore he understood what it was like. He had _swore_ he loved her… and she believed him. When he sold her to the damn Hutts, she'd only learned after that he had been a bounty hunter. Always chasing his next big payday. He'd lied the whole time, just wanting to get her off planet so he could sell her off. And Lu had _never_ recovered from the betrayal. 

Silence hung in the air between them for a few moments. The two women absorbing her tale. 

"I'm so sorry…" Omera said softly, now holding Lu's hand to comfort her. Cara nodded, looking sad. 

"I'm-I'm okay. Just… Haven't talked about that in… Longer than I care to admit." Lu tried to crack a half smile at her, sniffling. Taking slow, steadying breaths. Crying would do her no good and just make her hurt. 

They chatted for some time, about lighter things; Lu sat in her bed, exhausted and feeling not just physically beaten, but emotionally, too. It hadn't been intentional, and despite hurting while airing out her past, she felt better. The burden of her story now carried between three people. Instead of just her. Lu considered herself so incredibly lucky to have gone this far in life without friends who _knew_ her. She felt _calm_ when she realized she could trust these two women. The night wore on, but Lu's mind felt heavy. 

Now, she sat in silence, the kid sleeping next to her on her cot. Smoothly running her fingers gently over his tiny ridged forehead. Omera and Cara had left not too long ago. The Rebel gingerly carrying the still-sleeping Winta, to her and Omera's home. The sounds of the peaceful Sorgani night lush and comforting, until heavy leather boots met the boards outside, walking in. Mando had returned. 

"...Lu?" His modulated voice sounding tentative. As if he was unsure if using her given name was even appropriate.

"I'm awake. Come in." She said. His shadow on the drapery becoming his corporeal beskar and leather form as he moved past the fabric. "Hey." She greeted him quietly, pointing out the sleeping kid as notification to keep his voice low too. 

"... Hey." He said stiffly, barely above a metallic whisper. The armoured man seemed unsettled and unsure, strangely. Like he had something on his mind; even the modulator couldn't muddle that. Lu tried to help him out by filling the silence while he sorted himself out. 

"Sit." She told him, motioning at the chair. He took a pause but then carefully sat. Armour washed in a dull warm glow. "Omera left you some extra food in your room, in case you were still hungry."

"... That was kind of her." He said, sounding conflicted. Lu just decided to go out with it. 

"You should've taken her _offer_ ." She said casually. She didn't really _feel_ casual about this, weirdly. But from where she was standing, Lu couldn't figure a good reason to _not_ take a tumble with a beautiful person like Omera; even if a part of her would have felt _sad_ about it? She tried to ignore that. Mando's posture read like Lu just up and tried to slap his helmet. She looked down at the kid sleeping peacefully so that she didn't reveal too much through her face. 

"I… I can't." He said, sounding strangled, he too turned his black T void to the floor, his arms crossed in front of him. A strange feeling of _defeat_ tinged the air. 

"Sure you can. The Way of the Manda'lor's exclusive rule was the helmet can't come off, yeah? We all know where baby Mando's come from." Lu teased. His body looked even more shocked, though she didn't think that could be a thing.

"Don't freak out." She said calmly, trying to alleviate his obvious discomfort. Helmet turned, looking at her. Lu kept her eyes down to the kid. 

"It's… not just that." The helmet rasped. His voice was full of things she didn't understand. Guilt, maybe? 

_What could be unsettling him now?_ Lu pondered to herself, trying her best to keep her face neutral, yet soft to try and help ease him. She looked up at him now, quirking an eyebrow. 

"Listen, there's really no-" Lu started, weakly waving a hand at him. About to say there's nothing he needed to explain to her, and nor did she judge. But she halted. 

"I heard-earlier. You talking, with Cara and Omera." the Mandalorian spoke carefully still sounding strangled, while cutting her off. Unusual for him. Normally he seems content to take a back seat in conversation. Lu swallowed the nerves that threatened to bubble up. 

_Dank Ferrick. Gods damn my mouth._ Lu swore internally, hoping her face didn't reveal her inner tangle of emotions. Her mouth suddenly dry. She hadn't intended for _him_ to hear. 

"I… It wasn't _just_ The Creed that stopped me." His own voice turned low, gravelly and full of… _hurt._ Lu couldn't make everything out, but that much she could glean. Anxiety continued to hammer at her resolve, she didn't want to know what it was that troubled him.

_Don't say it. Please don't tell me…_ She raised a hand about to speak but he continued, startling her to silence. Knowing in the back of her mind the more familiar she became with the mystery, the more drawn she'd be… And Lu had already been actively trying to avoid the Mando after… _The damn dream where you were fucking him_. She suddenly remembered with an internal face-palm. The memory of it nearly causing her to blush outwardly. 

"I loved once. It fell apart-I never looked back." He managed to get out, taking her aback. The black T void slowly turned back to look at her. His broad shoulders slumped forward as he sat, hunched. Beskar helmet obscuring his face and Lu was eternally grateful for it. She didn't know what she would do if she could see an expression to match the _longing_ in his smoky, metallic notes. Hearing him like this was bad enough. The fact he _had_ loved once sent a _ripple_ through her. 

She thanked the Gods ruefully for her injuries and being unable to move without pain; Lu had the strange compulsion to, just, _hold_ _him_. Aside from her desire to kick herself.

It almost seemed like he maybe needed contact more than she did. Or perhaps it was that Lu had just long grown accustomed to living with her loneliness that it bothered her less than it does him. Maybe it was the fact she didn't have to contend with a life surrounded in ancient ore and a face behind a visor and a HUD that made his existence all the more isolating than she could ever know. Her broken heart was breaking for him, for the second time. 

Lu suddenly realized she was staring at him. Wide-eyed and startled, the faintest heat of blush felt on her ears all while her mind raced. _Shit._

"... You really didn't have to." She managed after a moment, mouth feeling clumsy; trying to keep composure. Another silence stretched between them. 

Lu wanted nothing more than to hide under the covers and pretend this wasn't happening to her, while wanting to do nothing more than console him at the same time; torn. His armour dull gold, brown leather and tattered wool in a wooden chair, contrasting. He was like some armoured visage of an ancient spirit made mundane before her. She felt locked while being pulled in too many directions at once. 

"A story is owed a story." The Mandalorian said after he paused, considering what to say. His voice bringing her back to reality. Lu's breath hitched. Mando's deep voice still tinged with some sadness, but he seemed to find a strange peace having told her. Audible in his metallic notes. She couldn't help but suddenly crack a smile, brushing aside her dark blonde fringe. 

At _every_ corner this damn man was surprising her. Lu was certain if she ever saw what he looked like under that beskar helmet, she would be incapable of resisting. But the fact he shared still brought a small joy to her broken heart. Her cracked smile turned into a wry grin as she thought of the perfect way to respond to that.

" _This is the Way_." Lu echoed his words with a nod. Tone light but still teasing.

The beskard man made his single laugh-huff noise then grabbed the kid gently from her cot, and wished her a goodnight. Retreating back to his own part of the barn. The thuds of his boots rumbling in her ears. 

"Don't think this gets you out of trouble for eavesdropping, though." Lu jokingly spoke to the dimness of the barn, teasing. 

Another humoured huff could be heard from the room behind her. Lu smiled and lay back to try and sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	11. The Mixed-Blood

Sleep indeed found her quickly. Long and deep. The next morning Lu awoke early, her eyes opening as the sun shone through the gaps of the boards of the barn. She gently shifted herself up, hurting much less already. Fifth day post the battle with the Raiders, and she was already much on the upswing. Feeling more rested than seemingly in  _ months _ . 

She was feeling bold enough to get out of bed and get herself her own water. Swung her legs over the side, being careful to not twist her torso. Her bare feet on the cool boards of the barn room floor felt wonderful as she managed to move to sitting at the side of the bed. Lu wiggled her toes. Nails, ankles and knees glimmering slightly as she moved. 

_ I really should be hurting more? I would have thought anyway.  _ Lu could feel her bandages, changed daily by Omera. And underneath still extremely tender to the touch. But otherwise her body was feeling better than it had in a long time. Normal aches and pains she felt, gone. Even had more movement than she would have expected five days post-injury. 

She wasn't clothed beneath the blanket, but she didn't want to fight with pants; the sky above was still dull, not yet a brilliant blue. The prime star still low. Early enough that most of the village had yet to wake. Calm and peaceful sounds of early morning outside; silence from the back 'room' of the barn where Mando and the kid slept. 

_ Ah. Fuck it. Omera's sweaters usually cover the important bits.  _ And Lu hadn't ever been that shy. To her people, nudity and sexuality was not a taboo thing. Contrasted to humanity's tendency to be somewhat  _ touchy _ about it. Hell, the way her people culturally handled sexual relationships between consenting adults was downright nonchalant compared to most human cultures. And only children legitimized by marriage 'counted'; marriage being a political contact about bloodlines and history to Kibahrri. 

Carefully she stood. Adjusting the borrowed wrap sweater slowly, but finding it easier to move the more she kept going. Tossing the sheet on the cot, Lu checked the bedside mirror to make sure this one; a medium blueish grey in colour, was indeed long enough. Plenty of leg still showed, but it ended up almost minidress length on her. Omera was not a short woman, by any means. A rare occasion was it, that Lu didn't resent being small of stature. 

Her legs still mottled light brownish-green and yellow in a couple spots from mostly-healed bruises. And there was a  _ lot _ of leg going on for her not being on a stage, in front of a crowd. Lu's mouth was dry from sleep though, and she needed that water. 

Quietly moving past the draped wall, she crept to near the front of the barn. Wincing once when she stepped too hard. There was the small table she'd figured would have the clay water pitcher with cups. Fortunately it was back far enough from the doorway that she wouldn't be seen from the outside, even though it was slightly ajar; spilling a golden beam of daylight onto the floor and nearly into the section that was her 'room'.

Lu very carefully poured herself some water, looking out the lush greenery out past the doorway ahead of her. Two of her braids falling over her shoulder. It had been nearly two weeks. Just two weeks and her life was upside down. Felt a hell of a lot longer than that. She sipped her water, the grasses of the small village just beyond the darkened doorway. Sorgan felt…  _ Magical.  _ But not for its  _ song _ , but because it felt like a fresh start to her. Like she was  _ meant _ to come and begin to lay her grief to rest.

  
_ Almost two weeks…  _ Lu thought to herself in a strange awe. Visions and voices and  _ songs _ leading her. To Nevarro, to the Mandalorian, him leading her here. And now, pieces of her life surfacing and coming into play like she could have never imagined. Two weeks and she was beginning to  _ let go  _ of what was no longer serving her. 

Just as  _ Qui-Gon Jinn' _ s ghost keeps telling her in her visions.

Her grandfather reaching through The Force, speaking with her from within the  _ Spirit's song _ in visions. The man who loved her grandmother so much, he broke his own code to father Enarra; learned to let go of his attachment and balance himself in the space where he held their love. Their story had become an almost fairytale to her House, though one that did not have a happy ending. 

It took some time for her to find the courage to admit it to herself, but that's who the noble, warm, encouraging voice belonged to. Enarra had mentioned having visions similar a long, long time ago. Her mother could even call on him, staring into firelight; listening for him in  _ The Song.  _

_ I've forgotten so much…  _ Lu wasn't sure where to go from here but rolling with what came her way had yet to fail her. She had a feeling that the more she leaned in here, the more would reveal itself. Qui-Gon told her to trust her feelings, Enarra had told her too, as a child. Though Lu had not known quite what she had meant until cusping on adulthood. Years later, it seems she's being forced to relearn those lessons all over again. 

Now. It was time for Lu to start doing just that. Time to stop being so  _ afraid.  _ She was at least off to a good start, even if it had earned her broken ribs. She flicked a braid over her shoulder, awash in the beam of golden light. The morning air cool on her bare legs, though the roughspun sweater was cozy so she wasn't cold. The day would likely be warm. She finished her water and put the cup back on the table. 

_ I want a bath so badly…  _ Having Omera help wipe her down with washcloths is getting real old. Her hair had also grown some, and her braids were feeling slightly loose on her scalp. She needed to redo them. 

From the back room, Lu heard a metallic, sleepy groan and some movement. 

_ Shit.  _ She was effectively naked aside from the roughspun sweater just long enough to barely cover her. And normally that wouldn't bother Lu but being caught like this by  _ the Mando _ was not how she wanted to start her day. She pulled the wrap closed a little tighter around her bust and turned to creep back to her 'room'. 

And she nearly jumped her skin, never mind the sweater, as she turned to see Mando and the kid standing just past the drape that closed off their 'room'. Her breath hitched from being spooked, causing her to wince from a shot of pain through her chest. 

" _ Gods damnit.  _ Don't  _ do  _ that." Lu cursed, feeling her spirit re-enter her body and got her wits about her. Holding her arms close, hand on her chest. 

_ So much for not being afraid.  _ Inner monologue rueful.

The child made a happy sound to greet her from the Mando's feet. High pitched half gurgle, half squeal. Mando stood, frozen in place, dead silent. His helmet had her fixed in the dead center of the T shaped void. Again she felt drawn, like she couldn't  _ not _ pay attention to him even if she wanted to.

_ Is he even breathing?  _ She quirked an eyebrow at him, trying to not make this any worse. For either of them. She took a couple steadying breaths. 

"Uh. Morning?" Lu kept her tone light. Carefully taking a step towards her drape. Suddenly very aware of being caught in the morning light and what few markings were visible likely glimmered. Internally Lu cursed herself for not being aware of her surroundings,  _ again _ . Strained silence stretched between them for a moment. She dared to  _ listen  _ to see if she could gauge the situation. Ringing beskar met her, a futile effort, Lu too taken aback to focus. 

"... Morning." He sounded like someone was strangling him underneath the woolen materials of his cloak. Suddenly animated, looking down and away from her.

A  _ rush _ came through her as she realized he was  _ fighting himself _ , perhaps? He was still biological, flesh and blood beneath all that gleaming silver armour. The thought of it made Lu's own blood start to move quickly. 

It was just easy to forget, sometimes. Carnal dreams of him or no. He was always short-spoken and to the point. Not necessarily blunt or harsh; but it was obvious the Mandalorian was a person more accustomed with the quiet of being alone, than speaking aloud. In that way, they were opposites. Lu was not uncomfortable around others, strangers or not, but she was forced to stay away. She had been comfortable here from day one. 

The Mandalorian though, he'd become more comfortable being around others as the days in the village wore on. At first he seemed very much out of place in a place so peaceful. With no biological face or features, Lu hadn't yet seen even a sliver of his skin, her mind just strangely misplaced the detail. He was still a  _ man _ beneath it all. 

Lu noticed too late that her ears and face were hot from her  _ own _ response. Thinking of what secrets his flesh may have beneath the ore and leathers. 

_ Gods damn now's not the time to be acting like a damn maid.  _ She was blushing furiously. She willed her naked legs to move again. 

"Uh. 'scuse me." Lu forced her voice to not be as surprised as she felt. She dropped her gaze, unable to keep looking at him. Took a few more careful steps forward, and slipped back behind the drape of her room.

_ How long was I standing there staring at him like an idiot? Gods what did I do to deserve this, now?... The broken promise about asking for things?  _ She remembered, back on Nevarro. 

_ I bet it was the broken promise about asking for things…  _ Lu internally groaned. 

She sat on her cot, trying to control her breathing so she didn't hurt too bad. Heart racing way faster than it  _ should  _ be. Staring up at the rafters. Braids tangled around her. Heavy boots made tentative footfalls, soles scraping the boards in her ears. Mando was walking. They stopped just before the way out the barn. 

"Going to round up food." the Mandalorians tone wasn't as strangled. Lu thought it out of place for him to say anything but he likely just wanted to play it cool. The door creaked and his footsteps faded. The barn now silent. He'd even taken the kid. 

Maybe Lu was just imagining the whole thing; he was probably just startled, not expecting to see her there, near nakedness aside. But  _ Gods be good  _ her body was awash with desire. She  _ wanted _ him. 

And even worse, she wanted  _ him _ to  _ want her. _

" _ Augh…" _ Lu groaned aloud. She hadn't felt this way in years. First that dream the night before the Raiders, and now this? Not only had she not felt attraction in years. She hadn't wanted to be wanted in years. Alura Lumenya wasn't  _ real _ , so when people wanted her they didn't really want  _ her.  _ Just a made up, fake person. A carefully crafted fiction used to conceal who Lu really was. But the Mandalorian had never known her as her stage-self.

_ Light save me.  _ Lu knew damn well she should be thinking with her brain and not her parts. 

She went to fight with her pants. 

It didn't take as long as she thought, but still took longer than she'd like. The sun was higher now, more activity outside. It was getting warmer already, the sky a brilliant blue. 

Though she was feeling guilty. Omera wanted the Mando, and she valued her friendship more than Lu needed to be satiated. No way was she going to get in the way of disturbing this new peace she'd found. This newfound feeling, a sense of belonging; of being home  _ within herself,  _ was fragile and she couldn't bare the idea of jeopardizing that. 

She realized that she needed a new headscarf, her black one ripped and shredded and likely gone; her two crystal pins had been recovered from the field but now she had no scarf. She may be outed already but the people didn't need to be reminded of her only-partial humanity. Another thing that could complicate that peace and delicate belonging.

Now feeling not just flustered but anxious, Lu wasn't sure what to do. She wanted outside. Needing more than just slivers of daylight through rough hewn boards and thatch. But dare not venture out without something covering her head. It was already warming and her cloak would be warm, and too heavy on her shoulders. Lu's side already aching from the activity of getting up and dressed. The boots were the worst, but she had managed, sucking in air behind gritted teeth, keeping her back and torso as straight as possible; she couldn't do them up as they should be but it didn't matter. 

Sounds of activity coming towards the barn broke through to her. Sounded like Omera, Winta and some of the other kids. But only Omera's steps walked up onto the porch boards. 

"Lu? You need help getting dressed?" She called, her soft voice coming through the door; it's hinges creaking. 

"I'm dressed, come in." Lu responded. Sitting back on her cot again, needing to take a breather. Steadying herself. Omera walked up and ducked in past the drapery of her room and smiled at Lu, she had more medium blue-grey fabric in her hand. Made the blues of Omera's dress all the more vibrant. 

"Dyed this while you were in bed. New headscarf, since yours was ruined." Omera held it out to her. Lu was taken aback. She gently took it, feeling the roughspun in her hands. It felt precious. 

"I swear you just… Always know? What's your deal?" Lu said with a small degree of awe, and a gentle chuckle. "I was just about to panic about it." She admitted. The gesture meant more to her than she could fully grasp. Omera bent down and fixed the too-loose straps on Lu's boots. 

"It's a Mom thing." the dark haired woman smiled back at her, standing back up from the rough floor. "And, Mando came and told us you were up. Breakfast is out at the tables if you'd like to join?" 

"Would love to." Lu said, beginning to wrap her braids, coiling them in the materials. She left her blonde pieces out, having gotten used to them. Moving slowly though, and gritting her teeth. Omera stepped up and began to help her. It nearly matched the blue-grey of the oversized wrap sweater she was still wearing. Sleeves pulled to her knuckles and waist tied tight. 

"There's another surprise outside for you, too." Omera's voice was playful as her tanned hands moved the fabric and Lu's braids about. Draping the material gently around her. In a strange way, reminding Lu of her own mother. Omera wasn't much older than her, hard to say, but she was absolutely like an avatar of maternal instincts.

"A surprise?... What kind of surprise?" Lu asked. Tone dry, suspicious. She wasn't sure what  _ else _ she could take already today. But the tone was a good way to camouflage how she was feeling. Omera laughed. 

"A  _ good _ one." She replied, extra emphasis in the 'good'. She continued to work, securing things in place with the two crystal pins. "There, think that should do. Hope that feels okay." Omera stood back. Lu gave a couple gentle tugs to make sure it was all in place, but it felt just fine. 

"Perfect." She managed to say, trying to keep her voice from breaking. She didn't deserve this woman's kindness. Omera, as far as Lu was concerned, was too good to be real. This whole thing  _ must _ be some bizarre dream.

Maybe she died on Nevarro after all and the Gods have taken pity on her? 

Didn't matter that she didn't care much for the krill that had a tendency to dominate their meals. Didn't matter that this room she had was three walls and a drape covering where she slept. Didn't matter that this headscarf was simple fabric that no one would look twice at. To Lu, this place was better than all the glittering, fancy places she had ever been. The people here kinder than any she'd known in a long time. 

Omera helped her stand and held the drape open so she could keep straight as she walked through. Keeping her foot falls soft, moving slow. To make sure she didn't hurt, but to also fortify up before going in front of people. This morning had already been an accidental emotional rollercoaster. Down, and sideways and now on a metaphorical starship going up; She didn't need to break down and bawl at the next instance of kindness. Lu could hear the kids outside, murmuring excitedly. Omera slipped past and pulled the door back enough for Lu to step through. 

She was momentarily blinded by the sudden change in lighting, but when her eyes adjusted she couldn't believe what she saw. 

Winta and most of the younger kids that had been in the hut the night of the Raiders attacking were outside. The front of the porch had been lined with picked wildflowers and other greenery from the area; all in a tried-to-be-straight line. Some flowers and plants still had roots. The kids' hands all dirty, their blue clothes green at some knees… the kids had them there  _ for her.  _

But the thing that held Lu's attention, was the children's  _ hair.  _ Every single girl, and even a couple of the boys with hair long enough, had them  _ in braids.  _ Some messy and clearly done themselves. Some done in neat little plaits having been aided by their parents. Even Winta had two braids in her shoulder length rich brown curls. Standing proudly, right up at the front. 

Lu couldn't help but stare out in shock, her hand went over her mouth, trying to not let her face scrunch up and let the tears filling her eyes fall. 

"Thank you!" They all said, haphazardly as a group of kids is want to do. They all sounded so  _ happy  _ to see her. Not only was it plain in their voices, though some more shy and quieter. She heard it in their  _ songs _ too. 

She'd never known what it was like, like this. She wasn't Alura the human singer. She was Lu, right now. Luna. _ Herself.  _ They'd never known the sparkly cantina singer. She may go by that name, certainly. But none of the airs, no illusions or trickery. No wig or paints or glittering gemstones glued to her fingers. Lu, the mixed-blood Kibahrr. With mismatched hair and mismatched eyes. 

Something in Lu realized she wasn't sure if she  _ ever _ wanted to be the cantina singer again. She felt her legs shake, tears fell and she couldn't stop them if she tried. Lu kept her hand over her mouth to prevent the full on ugly-crying that was threatening to surface. The green and blue of Sorgan's lush expanse all around her. The daylight warm and golden. Sounds of  _ happy _ children. It filled Lu's heart with  _ joy.  _

Winta walked up past the flowers, as Omera helped Lu to the ground. Knees unable to hold her up any longer, hitting the boards; it sent a jolt through her chest but she didn't care. Clenching her eyes and trying to breathe, tears streaming down Lu's face. She sat fully on her calves. Her chest not only burning from her healing ribs being agitated but because her heart really could burst. Omera was saying something but Lu couldn't hear her, her mind so overrun with feelings.

There in the Sorgani morning, on the rough hewn boards in front of the barn, Winta wrapped her skinny arms gently around Lu's neck and hugged her, headscarf and all. Omera behind her, helping hold her steady with a hand on her back. The kids cheered, and came up and suddenly there were a dozen pairs of little arms. Lu felt like they were helping put some of the busted pieces of her broken heart back together. Hugging Winta back, with the one arm that didn't hurt to lift. 

"Okay, guys. Time for breakfast, go on now. Lu needs to take it easy." Omera told them. Lu stayed there, a moment, with Winta, just hugging her. Trying to regain composure. The kids ran off, saying thank you, and bye, and see you later. Winta said bye to some over Lu's shoulders.

After a couple breaths, Lu let Winta go, and the young girl stood back. 

"Thank  _ you.  _ Winta." Lu said to her, smiling, her face still threatening to scrunch again. Omera held out a cloth to her and she took it, wiping her face. 

"You're welcome." The young girl said quietly. She sounded taken aback by the strong reaction Lu had. "Ar-are you okay?" 

"Never better." Lu told her, wiping her eyes. Voice ringing with truth. Regaining some hold on herself. Her heart really did feel like it just flew right out of her chest. 

"Come on, let's get some food." Omera said gently, helping her back to her feet slowly. 

Lu, half supported by Omera's tall frame, turned and gently walked from the barn, to head towards the common area. Winta took the lead and walked ahead of them. But as Lu raised her face to look ahead, her breath nearly hitched again. Thankfully she was focusing on controlling her breathing so she'd stop aching so bad, enabling her to catch herself. 

Cara and Mando, kid in his arm, were up ahead. Standing beneath an awning. They'd watched the whole exchange by the look on Cara's face. Knowing, yet trying to be smug to hide her own feelings, arms crossed.

Lu couldn't help but stare a moment at Mando. Beskar bright in the Sorgani daylight, tattered cloak moving in a bit of the gentle breeze. The black T void had her dead center. The Mandalorian eventually nodded, posture relaxed, though full of things she couldn't read. Lu let herself be guided by Omera walking to the common area, internally shoving away thoughts of earlier in the barn. 

After having her fill of food and drink, she sat in the common area, surrounded by the happy sounds of the village. Winta and the Mando's tiny green-skinned kid chasing frogs, others running and laughing. Villagers alike said hello to her as they walked by, all  _ thankful _ . Lu was having a hard time keeping her face neutral. Unaccustomed to being treated with so much kindness. 

"Are you gonna be okay?" Cara asked, playfully. The dropper sat next to her on the bench, sitting facing away from the table where they'd eaten; Mando having gone back to the barn to eat his breakfast safely in solitude. 

"Yeah… It's just. A lot. Not used to being treated so…" Lu trailed off. Trying to find a word that was immense enough, but not too grand it would seem like she was exaggerating. 

"Decently?" Cara offered, her rich voice playful as she looked out at the kids and the village around them. Lu chuckled softly, because well, yeah it's a simple word but it was the Gods damned truth. 

"... Yeah." Lu confirmed plainly. Cara chuckled. 

"You really don't ask for much, do you?" the Rebel joked. 

"Well, when you're used to being disappointed? It's just… Been easier. To be someone  _ else _ for so long… To pretend tha-That I didn't need anyone." Lu wasn't sure how to even describe the feeling. How do you tell a person how it feels to be  _ seen _ as whole, when you've only been seen as broken? As a monster? To feel like she wasn't  _ alone _ after a lifetime of loneliness _?  _

She turned her face up to the sky. Bright blue, the daylight warm on the skin of her face. The grass beneath her boots, trees swaying in the breeze. Life and happiness all around her. It felt  _ glorious.  _ Years spent in space stations or on desolate planets, trapped in cities and divey bars fading away as if carried off by the breeze. 

Never could Lu have imagined this could be her life. She felt  _ renewed _ . 

"Well. You got friends now." Cara turned and looked at her, a wide gentle smile on her face. Lu turned and looked to the dark haired woman, eyes wide with a strange surprise she couldn't hide.

The Rebel Dropper was a woman of absolute intimidating stature, but somehow still managed to be so soft. Lu was dainty and small next to her. They couldn't look more opposite, but she wondered where this woman had been all her life. Lu felt that Cara had meant it.  _ Friends.  _ Real friends. Not friends of Alura Lumenya, who had to keep people at arms length, who was effectively in 'competition' for gigs with other women in her line of work.

Friends of  _ Lu _ . 

"Oh come on! Don't cry again. I'm sorry." Cara said, noticing Lu's face fill with emotion, tears welling. Her voice playful and teasing, but still concerned. 

"I'm  _ okay _ . Gods." Lu said, tone gruff, chuckling. Sniffling, and wiping her eyes on her roughspun sleeve. She really was okay. Cara laughed. 

Emotional rollercoasters, weird sexual tension with an armoured man she barely knew, and broken ribs and all. Lu was okay for the first time in since her childhood.

The next few days wore on in a steady rhythm. Waking, eating meals communally with every one, Mando eating alone in the barn after; Lu sitting with Cara, watching the children. In the evenings the village would often have a fire in the center, every one chatting. 

One of the men in the village had a seven stringed Hallisket; a common instrument that was found everywhere in the Galaxy, but had its origins on Naboo. It wasn't perfectly tuned and he was only proficient in playing. He played on a couple nights after indulging in plenty of spotchka. Listening to jilted, choppy notes; felt rough and yet fitting for the humble setting. Even that felt perfect to Lu. 

After, she'd return to the barn, to her cot, and sleep the best sleeps she'd had in recent memory. Waking feeling rested and ready for the day. Her body felt stronger and less painful every morning. She wasn't entirely sure why she was improving so quickly; she had a hunch the kid was helping out. Mornings when she woke with him snuggled in with her were always the ones where she felt extra well, and he'd seemed a little more sleepy. 

Mando kept his distance, it seemed. Though Lu was thankful, made for less distractions. He wasn't being cold. But Lu was starting to wonder why it was appearing that he was withdrawing. Not just from her, but from Omera and the others, too. He would at least still join her in the evening. Sit with her and whomever was joining her that night in front of the barn, kid in arm or waddling just behind him. 

Some nights they didn't speak, just exchanged nods and sat in contented silence, the kid in his lap. Some nights the kid would choose to sit with her, cooing and gurgling as if he was telling her about his day. She would say things back, "oh, really?" and "no way!". His big brown eyes looking up to her, big green ears tilting as he moved his head. Three pudgy green fingers wrapped around one of her pale ones. She would smooth her fingers gently over his adorable little head and wonder again at her new life, smiling. 

And some nights, like tonight, she and Mando exchanged a few words. The Mandalorian surprised her by speaking first; sitting in the golden light of the lanterns at the front. Dark inky night dotted with starlight above them. The village all asleep, Cara long gone to her own bed. 

"Where'd you learn to fight like that?" His metallic voice breaking the stillness, though he kept it low; tone tentative. The kid was asleep in her lap. It only took nearly a week since she'd gotten up out of bed under her own will and he was  _ finally _ asking? He was staring out at the dark expanse of wilderness, arms crossed, legs stretched out. Fortunately, appearing relaxed. 

"My people aren't renowned warriors like yours." Lu started, staring up at the night sky. "But my uh, House-it's tradition that dictates we learn particular skills… battles between Houses can pop up now and again. I've had a sword in my hand since I could walk." She tried to explain as best she could while being vague enough to not allude to that sneaky detail; the part where she's the daughter of the last Kibahrri High Priestess who was best friends with the Duchess of Mandalore some forty odd years ago or thereabouts. Well before Lu was born in the early years of the Empire's reign. Oh yeah and her grandfather was a Jedi, ancient enemy of the Mandalorians; Lu had no idea how he'd react to any of that and couldn't risk saying anything now. 

"Houses?" he inquired in his deep metallic rasp. Sounding even more unsure if he should be asking. Lu chuckled at his tone. 

"Look, keep asking. I'll tell you when you get to somewhere you're going to have to  _ exchange. _ " She said to him wryly. Waving at him as if to brush off his unease about it. 

"Houses are groups of families, we aren't all directly related, though there's usually marriage pacts and treaties and a bunch of bureaucratic bantha shit in between." She continued, her tone dry. Lu hated politics. She cleared her throat. Mando nodding silently in the lamplight. 

"Each House has a chosen leader, there's five in total. They run political affairs and the like… But they don't always agree. Kibahrr can be, uh, fickle? We're history keepers and storytellers; one time war broke out because one House dared forget a tiiiiny detail." She scoffed. "That kinda stupid crap. Pretty ridiculous."

"Sounds like you have strong opinions about it." Mando said, looking over his shoulder at her, his tone tinged with curiosity.  _ Shit.  _

"Uh. Yeah. I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things." She said defensively.

"Because you're not full blood? Cara implied." His tone was plain, her heritage didn't seem to matter to him. Though maybe it's because he wasn't born a Mandalorian. Lu realized he was in a similar situation. A Mandalorian, who is  _ not _ a Mandalorian by blood… 

"Thats… a part of it. My mother was half human, my father full blood. She'd hoped my life wouldn't be so…" She trailed off and shrugged, unable to find a word. Didn't want to invite a pity party, and her voice would definitely crack. Lu didn't need to get all emotional in front of him.

"...Isolating." Lu finally decided on, plain and to the point. It was really the only word that came to mind. Her tone ended up quiet, but her voice didn't break. 

The Mandalorian nodded. Silence stretching out again. 

Lu found her eyelids getting heavy. Her body was calling for the cot, for sleep. She stifled a yawn with the back of her hand. As much as she wanted to continue enjoying the inky peacefulness of a latern-lit night. It was definitely time for sleep. 

"Well, I think I best get myself to bed before I fall asleep out here." She slowly stood, able to carry the kid now. He was tiny and if she held him opposite her half-healed ribs she wasn't uncomfortable. His little snores disrupted as the movement disturbed him. She made towards the door, Mando suddenly stood and closed the distance between them, boots thudding the boards. 

"Here. You shouldn't be carrying him." The Mando's voice was gruff, trying to control his tone. He tentatively reached, seeming unsure if he should be so close. But his concern was clear. Lu couldn't help but crack a smirk as she handed the sleeping baby over. 

Caught up in his presence, she couldn't stop her fingertips accidentally grazing along his arm, touching leather, then cool beskar of his vambrace, and finally over the back of his leathered hand. She froze. He froze. Her smirk melted. Lu caught her face and tried to look neutral despite the tangle of feelings coursing through her. 

For a moment they stood there together, in the doorway of the barn, lit in a dim golden hue. Inky black sky above them full of stars. Lu found herself transfixed in the black T of his helmet again. Felt like if she just looked hard enough perhaps she could make out a feature of his biological face. She knew it was futile. Didn't stop Lu from feeling like she  _ needed _ to see him. 

"Should get some sleep." The Mandalorians' voice came through the modulator. Not sounding so strangled as that morning he caught her only in a barely-long-enough sweater, but a little. Full of things Lu both wanted to know, and didn't. His warm, smoky rumble that she swore she could  _ feel _ in her bones. 

_ Nevermind what he looks like. If I ever hear his natural voice without that modulator…  _ Lu didn't even want to finish that thought. Shutting it all down before she started another storm within herself. 

"Yeah… Goodnight, Mando." Lu managed to get out barely above a whisper. Regaining control of her voice. Saying his given moniker now wasn't as awkward as before; even if she knew it wasn't his actual name. No one called her by her real name either.

Lu turned and entered the darkness of the barn. She couldn't help but look over her shoulder before she stepped past the drapery of her 'room'. 

Framed by the doorway of the barn, illuminated in warm golden lamplight against the black wilderness behind him; The Mandalorian kept his visor fixed on her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	12. The Departure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bittersweet fluffs :3 Thank you for reading~

_Grandfather?_ Lu called, reaching out into _The Song_ for him. 

It's been about three weeks since the battle. And she was finally feeling strong enough to try and reach him. Not too far from the village, in a small clearing she had found. A line of trees between her, her small fire, and the village. Sitting on the ground, cross-legged. Cloak pooled around her. The night, dark and thick. She'd been meditating, like she hadn't done since she was a teenager. Well, trying to anyway. 

The ever present deep _thrumm_ of _The Song_ in her senses, Lu strained to _listen._ It was futile though. Having been at this for at least an hour. She couldn't focus, and her vocal cords were feeling raw from humming a constant note to try and aid her attempts. She couldn't break through the surface to find any specific notes that could lead her to Qui-Gon Jinn's ghost within the deep orchestra of the universe. 

Mando had been avoiding her today. 

Last night, just after dinner as the sun was setting she'd decided to tune that Hallisket for the man who kept playing it, okay-ish. He'd been more than happy to hand it over. 

"The Dropper said your kind were musicians." he'd remarked kindly. 

She'd sat, the communal fire lit. Mando and the kid sitting across the way, him having returned from finishing his own meal. The fire in between them. Cara, Omera and Winta had been there, too. Lu managed to tune it quickly, it wasn't terribly off to start. But when she got the sound right the chords rang _true_. 

"May I?" She asked the owner of the Hallisket. He nodded immediately. 

"Please."He said happily. 

She strummed. The strings felt hard against her fingers; unused to playing. Lu played a few tentative notes to get a feel. Some of the villagers stopped what they had been doing to listen. 

Lu closed her eyes, and exhaled. And let an old memory of her mother teaching her scales to start lead her, loosen her fingers. Heart feeling light. 

"Been awhile since I played." She had admitted, understating that immensely, out loud. Feeling weirdly vulnerable; another thing she found doing as _Lu_ instead of _Alura_ ; even playing an instrument feeling so much more important. A few villagers had chuckled. The owner had laughed outright. 

"Already plays better than I do!" he bellowed. She smiled at that. Sorgan was a place made for smiling, it seemed to Lu. Instead of letting any nerves get the better of her, she had pressed on, brushed dark blonde fringe from her eyes. Took a breath, and strummed. 

She let her fingers remember old patterns; muscles in her hands and arms remembering more the more she played. Fingerpads and nails strumming and flicking the old, stiff strings. She played softly at first, but building the more confident she became. Letting the music take over, hands becoming steadily more familiar with the instrument. She may have started singing, had she been able to fall deep enough into playing. 

Lu had tried so hard to not be aware the Mando was watching her, through the fire. She kept her gaze on the Hallisket and her hands, but beyond the veil of her lashes, he was like a beacon in her peripherals. Even mid-play she couldn't help but be _aware_ of the armoured man.

She could barely see him, beyond the ripples of the heat. Didn't stop her mind drifting to him anyway. Her dream of him on top of and _inside_ her, metallic moans in her ear, breathing ragged. To when he caught her in the morning light, barely clothed. Constantly pulled into the dark void in the center of his helmet. To the night time light conversations; his armour reflecting warm golden light, and his burgeoning curiosity about her people. And her.

The kid was in his lap, watching her intently, ears swaying as he enjoyed the music. Lu could _feel_ him, sitting there. Contentedness and feeling safe in the Mando's presence. Feeling _happy._ Something _immense_ welled in her, that she didn't quite understand. Lu had _felt_ something. Akin to an ancient echo.

Heart feeling it could burst, yet again, Lu closed her eyes and played until she literally broke a string. Twanging with a sudden snap that spooked her out of the strange, gentle profound awe she had been feeling. 

"I'm so, so sorry." Embarrassed as all hell, fingers slightly tender, unused to playing and lacking calluses she once had. Her face fell, feeling terrible. Dismissing a sense foreboding bubbling up. 

"I should have been more mindful…" her voice trailed off, again internally admonishing herself for her lack of _awareness_ . It'd become a trend lately and she was getting real tired of her own shit. Why was she like this? Has the Mandalorian really affected her wits _this_ badly? 

" _Don't_ _be_. Strings are old. Hadn't been played like that in a long time. Needed replacing." The old man said, smiling. "Best playing we've had round these parts in a long time!" 

The few kids remaining awake, whined that she could no longer play. The sun had fully set. Their parents shooed them off to bed; some of the adults returning. Many thanking her for her playing. The village resumed its milling about. 

The mood was jovial, and the spotchka was plentiful. Cara, Omera and Lu sat together, Mando still sat in his spot across, the fire still burning. He appeared to be half chatting with a group of villagers next to him, kid fighting sleep in his lap. As much as she was thankful he was still here, he was a distraction while sitting with a quickly indulging Rebel vet and Omera. 

"Come on it's not _terrible._ Just try and if you hate it, you hate it and I won't say anything." Cara said, a clay cup of spotchka in her hand, held out to Lu. Bright blue liquid sloshing. "It's just a few sips, to celebrate."

"I don't drink all that much to be honest. And celebrate what?" Lu had been confused. Omera giggled, she didn't drink often either and was already beginning to show a little redness in her cheeks. 

"I dunno. Friendship!" Cara wiggled the cup, a devious smile on her handsome face. Lu rolled her eyes, but chuckled. And took the cup. She sniffed. 

" _Gods_ _be good_. This smells _foul_! Not gonna lie." Lu's nose scrunched and she looked at the dark haired rebel. Tone drier than a Jaaku dune. "Deadass foul."

Cara and Omera both broke out in hysterics. 

_Oh Gods I don't even care for the krill. And now, liquor made of it? Light save me. Gross._ Lu sighed, resigned to her fate. Wouldn't hurt to just try it once, get grossed out, and be done with it. 

Or so she had thought. The liquor was better than the fish, for as terrible as it smelled. It didn't surprise her that this had become the Outer Rims favourite drink. 

Lu had gotten a wee bit tipsy, not that that was difficult. Cara and Omera, though, both down and out hammered. Cara loud and obnoxious, Omera staying quiet flushed and laughing. Lu may be a lightweight but she knew that, and was lucky enough to have had a big dinner. Full stomachs took the liquor easier. She'd ended up having two more cups after the first. Water came after, though. Her body felt light, face certainly flushed. She didn't want to ruin the feeling of this place by making herself sick, her ribs still healing too.

When it was all done and the village turning to sleep, Lu stumbled back to the barn, with Mando's assistance. He could have carried her and it might have been less of a bother, but he just patiently walked behind her, making sure she didn't fall; baby asleep in the crook of his arm. Lu hummed a smattering of melodies idly. 

"Won't lie, Mando. Do wish you'd eat with all of us." She blurted, managing to look over her shoulder at him. 

"No can d-" Metallic voice was clearly amused at her antics, though still seeming apprehensive. 

"I _know._ I know. I know." waving at him, cutting him off. He made that disgruntled sigh noise, shaking his head ruefully. "Don't judge me." She griped, nearly tripping on a porch board as she step-stumbled up. Mando caught her shoulders with his free arm, gently steadying her. She must be more liquored up than she thought, since she barely felt it in her ribcage. 

"Come on, ya lightweight _._ " He snarked. "Be careful." and chided. Half annoyed, but still half amused. He thought this _funny_ did he _?_

"Rude." She said, deadpan, yet teasing. Staring up at him but trying to be "discreet" about it; as well she could, being buzzed. The lamps gave his armour that dull gold glow. Even beneath the jaw, black fabric met right up to the helmet. Not a single sliver of skin. He made that humoured huff noise, and gently guided her inside the barn. 

Walking her carefully in the darkness of the interior, they stopped at her drape, before the Mando crossed his. Her eyes adjusted. It wasn't completely black inside, warm light spilling through the cracks of the walls from outside. She didn't want him to remove his arm, nearly stepping back into him as he stepped away. 

"You're going to feel this in the morning." His metallic voice was warm, amused. 

They were standing apart in the darkness. 

Lu looked down at the tiny sleeping, large eared alien baby in the crook of the Mandalorians arm, barely able to make him out. Reaching out to gently pet the ridges of his little forehead with her fingers. A moment passed before she could think of something to say; her mind slow from the spotchka. Brain had been swimming, thoughts of Mando and the kid, how much they'd both come to mean to her in these weeks. Even on a strictly platonic level, the brooding, armoured man had grown on her; she cared, and wanted to see more of this tentative gentle side of him. He appeared a better man than she had initially given him credit for. 

"You're so good to him. I've seen you, these past weeks. Being very much a doting father. H-he trusts you…It's sweet." Lu said, barely above a whisper, liquor loosening her filter; mouth feeling heavy, words sounding clumsy. Mando stiffened at the compliment. A quiet stretched between them, if it was awkward though, she couldn't tell. 

Lu absolutely could have thrown herself at him. But the liquor had not loosened her _that_ much; guilt of how Omera would feel a painful reminder that it wouldn't be worth it. But the Mando had been withdrawing the past while; in a liquor induced stupor, Lu felt the compulsion to try and alleviate whatever was causing him to pull back. 

"... Yeah." His metallic voice eventually rasped. Lu couldn't help but look up at his helmet, his voice such a tangle of emotions; sadness there, and confliction, for certain. Though what he was feeling conflicted over she had no idea. The light was dim enough inside she could make out the T, the beskar of the rest of the helmet reflecting what little light was available. The child's small snores audible through the stillness. 

Lu could smell the leathers he wore, the beskar ringing in her somewhat inebriated senses. Where once it had been something that had unsettled her, a few weeks later, it was a now welcome _sound_. She could hear him breathing; his beskar chest plate rising and falling. Tense. 

Her mind had raced in that moment, imaging slowly stripping off each piece of beskar. Peeling away layers of cloth and leathers to see the _man_ underneath. Face flushed brilliantly hot, from the spotchka, yes. But also because her heart was in her throat. Blood rushing. Her face must have been plain, because he became steadily more uncomfortable. T visor seemingly locked on her, just as much as she felt locked in place by it. Feeling _pulled_ into that deep black void. 

_Gods be good…_ Lu had internally swore, awash in a kind of awe of him. _Desire_ course through her. 

In a rush of impulse, unimpeded by her artificially lowered inhibitions, Lu raised a hand. Suddenly holding her breath. Fingers barely glimmering in the low light, just beyond the roughspun of her sleeve. The pad of her thumb traced along the bottom jaw line of his helmet, barely touching. 'Chin' to the ridges near where an 'ear' would be, for his biological features. Light and tentative. The ore was cool to the touch. She kept moving her hand back, emboldened momentarily by his stillness and the surrounding darkness. 

The Mandalorian sucked in a breath and froze completely. Lu snapped out of it and dropped her hand, own breath caught in her throat. His boots made a scrape and a thud in the dark, taking a surprised step back. 

"Im sorry-I shouldnt-" Words poured out from her mouth, clumsy and anxious. Her face felt like it was on fire. She dropped her gaze, as if it could hide her. She hoped the almost pure darkness that washed everything out hid how flushed her face felt. 

_Gods damn you, acting brand new. Get your wits about you._ She had mentally cursed at herself. 

"Goodnight." The Mandalorians voice was curt; a harsh metallic rasp. His boots struck the boards as he escaped into his room. She didn't know what to do; stood there a moment before retreating back behind her own drapery. 

_I know I shouldn't have fucking done that, that's for sure._ Lu now groaned internally, coming back to the present as her little fire was coming down to just embers. Lost in the memory of the night prior. Shivering, not from just the cool night air, but the vivid memory. Reliving how her body reacted to him. 

Heaving a heavy sigh, she stared up at the night sky. Qui-Gon Jinn has not answered her, and it was getting far too late. The village couldn't be heard, seeming asleep beyond the tree line.

A part of her didn't want to return to the barn. To face the Mandalorian now, after that; he'd been even more distant, definitely downright avoiding her. She had no idea where he'd gone off to, today. But he'd left the kid with Omera and Winta in the morning. Popped up walking by, past a hut to take his meals to the barn. Then headed back out to be alone again. 

_I shouldn't have touched him like that._ The first time, brushing his arm had been accidental. This had been outright bold. He had shown a soft side these weeks, the Mandalorian bounty hunter a complicated man; but she still didn't _know_ him. He'd begun to ask questions more easily of her, curious. But she probably ruined that. 

_Light forsake me. Why did I do that?_ She buried the last of the dying embers of her tiny fire to smother them. Stood, and trudged back towards the village feeling sorry for herself. Her chest was feeling sore. She was in much butter shape but still had a week or two before she could consider herself fully healed. 

The barn was dark and silent when she entered. Though she was certain the Mando was in the back, Lu could _feel_ the kid there. She slipped past her drape and sat on her cot, beginning to kick off her boots. 

"... Lu?" The Mandalorians voice quietly made its way to her ears. It nearly scared her, but he had been so quiet she didn't jump. Anxiety bubbled, she shoved it away as best she could. 

"I'm here." She tried to say as casually as possible. Not wanting an ounce of the mess inside her to be hinted at. No idea how successful she was. 

"... Last night-" he started, but she couldn't take what he was about to say. The anxiety she'd pushed away slammed back into her. She didn't want to talk about it. Just pretend it didn't happen. 

_Shit._

"It's okay." She said quickly, whisper-tone accidentally lower than she'd intended, talking over him. "That damn spotchka… " She tried to joke but it felt hollow, "Meant no disrespect… " she trailed off. 

She heard his single huff noise, but this time it didn't sound as amused as usual. 

"... Yeah." His metallic rasp barely audible, full of things she couldn't make out.

That morning, the atmosphere in the barn was tense right upon waking. Mando had nodded in greeting but didn't seem to want to talk, he'd left the kid with her to go… Wherever, again. 

Lu took the kid and went to see Omera and Winta, they were checking on some krill pools. Some children, including Winta, and the child playing together as the adults around them worked. Despite her low mood, seeing happy kids and the warm daylight managed to help make her feel marginally better. 

"He's been pensive lately…" The dark haired farm woman said. Cara and Mando stood off a ways away, in front of the doorway of the barn, chatting idly. Cara seated, the Mandalorian standing against the doorframe. Omera had just been over there, asking if he'd needed anything. 

"Hmmn… Yeah." Lu said, distractedly. 

"Has he said anything to you?" Omera asked. 

"No." Lu forced herself to keep her tone light. "Who knows what goes through that beskar bucket?" she sounded harder than she'd intended so she laughed a bit to try and soften it; Lu realized it probably sounded fake as hell. Omera smiled sadly at her. 

Lu watched the sky, letting the happiness of Sorgan and the villages _songs_ wash over her. Trying to let herself be filled with it. If she focused on that, she didn't have to think of the brooding Mandalorian. Fiddling with the blueish-grey headscarf Omera had gifted her. She was back in her own clothes entirely. Her cloak was still back in the barn, though, too warm to wear during the day. 

She'd never felt out of place, but three weeks on and she was feeling antsy. Something was tingling in the back of her mind. Lu assumed it was just the Mandalorians behaviour unsettling her; she had no other justification. This place was like paradise. 

After lunch, Omera and everyone went back to working the krill pools. Lu and the child joined them. Cara had disappeared somewhere and Lu didn't feel right forcing herself onto the Mandalorians presence by moping inside the barn. Feeling miffed, she had half a mind to go sleep this off in her cot; wouldn't be worried about Mandalorian behaviour if she was asleep. But thats what _old_ Lu would have done. She was supposed to be _not_ doing that. 

_Why am I like this?_ Groaning internally at herself for being such a damn mess. And why won't that nagging feeling go away? 

Footsteps, Mando's approached. He stopped at Lu's side where she sat. 

"Excuse me." He acknowledged Omera with a nod, and then looked down at her. He was already taller than her but from her spot she was kneeling in the ground, he seemed _massive._

"Can I have a word?" Metallic tone all business. 

_Light forsake me._ She tried to swallow her heart that just tried to leap out of her throat. Omera looked up at him, her eyes tinged with sadness but otherwise kept her face neutral, warm. Likely better than Lu, she'd bet. 

"Of course." Lu said, standing. She forced her tone to be light. Smiled down at Omera, and took Mando's lead, following him. He walked away from the krill pools. Not far from the beginning of the tree line. Boots heavy, cape flapping. He seemed strangely resolved and yet, sad? 

He stopped, and she stopped in front of him, his back to the trees. Hers to the village. She fiddled with her headscarf anxiously, brushed aside her blonde hair. He took a breath. 

"It's… Very nice here." He started, seeming so unsure, but his tone was soft. And sad. Lu's anxiety dissipated, in its place a sudden curiosity; a need to solve whatever was troubling him growing. 

_Where's he going with this?_ That strange unsettled feeling creeping in the back of her mind again. Something was wrong. 

"Yes." She said carefully, making her voice sound close to cheerful. 

_Serenity. Please heed me._ Lu focused, forcing her anxiety and curiosities aside. The answer would reveal itself if she didn't talk over him and just let him speak. 

_Serenity_ answered. A calm stillness came over her. She _listened_ as he spoke. 

"I think-It's clear he… He's happy here." The Mandalorian eventually spoke, T visor looking down at her. His helmet's modulator did nothing to hide from her; he was being careful with his words. Trying his damndest to not sound sad. Like he'd practiced saying it, so he wouldn't be so obvious. But her ears were far too keen. 

She kept her hold on her _Serenity_ and looked right back up at that black T. Willing herself to see past it, futile as that may be. Lu had a feeling she knew where he was going, him having been so withdrawn the past while.

"What about you?" Lu inquired softly. Perhaps she could find a way to frame it to change his mind? He should stay with the kid. With Omera. And Winta _._ Yes, a part of her couldn't help but want him to stay for her too. But she didn't want the kid to carry the same weight with him she had.

_Don't leave._ Lu pleaded internally. While she couldn't help herself being drawn to the Mandalorian, her heart was used to being broken. Used to being abandoned. Used to so-called friends leaving or betraying her. She could, and would happily, bare more if it meant this paradise stayed _whole._ To Lu, it wouldn't feel _right_ if Mando wasn't here. It wouldn't be paradise for the kid any longer. 

For _the child_ , she would bare whatever heartbreak the Gods sent her way, if it meant the Mandalorian stayed with him. 

Lu had _never_ gotten over her father's departure; and the lack of closure about his death haunted her to this very moment. He had left a broken hearted man, unable to bare living with a woman who couldn't love him in the way he needed. Because her heart had already been filled with, effectively, _two_ people. She had indeed still loved Lu's father, in a way. But he knew it was never with her whole heart… like he had loved Enarra.

"Me?" The Mandalorian asked, sounding confused as to why she would ask what he wanted. Sometimes, sometimes this man could be _so_ oblivious. It only added to his strange charm. She couldn't help but smile sadly at him. His posture made it clear he was surprised. 

"Are _you_ happy here? The villagers all want you to stay, you know. They're grateful." Lu pressed, unconsciously taking a step towards him. "I'm more versed about Mandalorian culture than some. But you'll forgive me for wondering why you can't just… Pack _this_ all away-" motioned to his armour vaguely "-in case there's trouble?" 

"You and he could have a good life. He could be a kid for a while…" She couldn't help herself sounding sad, but decided that had no place here. She cleared her throat. 

"Besides. Omera's sweet on you, and she's literally perfect wife material." Lu crack a smirk and made her tone be playful; if _two_ people got to be happy if she was out of the equation, so be it. 

The daylit, bright beskar armoured man's posture stiffened. Shock apparent. She couldn't help her face looking sad, pleading. Desperate for him to stay. 

_Stay. He needs a father. Please, Mandalorian. Don't leave._

His body language changed, shoulders taking a slight slump. Looking defeated, almost. She couldn't help take another half step forward, about to place a hand at his elbow; unable to resist attempting to physically comfort him in some way. He pulled his visor away from her, shaking his head slightly, gaze more downward. Avoiding looking at her face. She caught herself before touching him again. 

"I don't… _belong_ here. But he does." The voice that came from the helmet was strangled; his deep smoky voice laden with pain. The sadness she heard there was like a vibro knife to her heart.

"... _What?_ " She blurted, startled by his admission. Lu couldn't hold her face anymore, hearing him like this.

Guilt hit her, realizing that she hadn't done a damn thing to stop this from coming. Her dislike of Hunter's, accusing him of being an _inadequate caretaker_ simply because of how he made his means. She may have inadvertently allowed her own pain to poison his own confidence. He may be _unprepared_ for taking care of a child, but he was far from inadequate where it counted. You can't _teach_ empathy and compassion. He proved he had at least enough to not let the child fall prey to whatever fate the Empire had in store for him. And in these past weeks, she had watched a softness in him come forward as he minded the kid. 

The pain he felt for not _belonging_ reminded Lu of her own struggles with feeling out of place. She never felt like she'd belonged anywhere, and now she could be a part of why _he_ believed he couldn't belong here. Tears welled in her eyes. 

"Don't be _stupid_ ." Lu continued, voice nearly breaking. He was looking at her again, that T fixed right on her. But his body said he was caught off guard. She went to grab his arm, damn her nerves about it. He needed to be told he deserved to stay. "Of _course_ you d-" 

A blaster bolt screamed from the forest, startling her and cutting her off, causing her to pull back. Mando spun faster than her wits came back to her. 

"Go get the kids!" His command sounded as startled as she was, rough. He ran towards the trees, deadly intent sending him into the brush. Lu's legs turned her and sent her speeding back to where they'd left Omera and the kids before her mind fully registered what happened. Her chest felt it was being pierced with every heavy footfall as her boots struck the grass, running as fast as her body could take. Not just because of her healing ribs, but also because Lu was unable to handle the thought of any of these people being harmed. 

It felt like eons before Mando returned, with Cara. The Droppers face looked unhappy. Mando wouldn't look at her, keeping his visor on the ground. He seemed torn, yet contemplative. An anger seethed under the surface. Lu desperately wanted to just hug the Mandalorian for being such an idiot and thinking he didn't belong, being thankful he was okay. The shock of blaster fire after weeks of peace had scared her so badly, she felt a mess. The atmosphere of the village was pensive. They'd all scattered for cover when the bolt rang out. The kids too. Everyone was safe and had been accounted for. 

"What happened? Who shot?" Lu half-demanded, waiting had eroded her patience. Sitting up from where she had been sitting with Omera and Winta at the barn. Wincing as her ribs protested, running had jostled her too much.

"Me. Bad news." Cara answered. She didn't look injured, thankfully. Lu just stood there, confused and on edge. When the Mandalorian spoke, voice heavy, a tinge of anger behind his tone, he wouldn't look at her. 

"Cara shot a Hunter on patrol. After the child… Had a fob." He sounded like he could chew the beskar he wore, though he was making an effort to take the aggression from his voice. He sounded tired, too, to Lu.

Her heart sank. But the gears in her mind started turning, driven by her instinct to survive. 

"Then… Then we have to go. We can't endanger the village further." Lu said immediately. Snapping into crisis-management mode; She was so used to bailing out of shit situations in a hurry it was basically a compulsion at this point. Her voice must have been harder than she thought, though, Mando snapped his T to her at her words, surprised. She looked at him, her face probably saying a million things, not caring to keep it all from showing. "Leave me wherever you stop next, if you want. But I can't stay here knowing we're a liability."

His shoulders straightened, the weight of how she would react to the news of a hunter must have bothered him. He stayed silent, but eventually nodded; his movements laden with emotions she couldn't take the time to sort. 

Everyone was quiet as they packed up the sled with the partial armoury Mando had brought. Boxes being stacked in. Lu had gone and fetched her cloak, and her re-assembled staff hiding her sword. Before she grabbed her bag, though, she rifled through it and plucked a decent sized gemstone off a seam of a dress. Shoving it back in amongst her wigs and data pad. Putting gloves back on her hands after weeks without them felt strange. 

When the sled was packed up, Lu made her way over; taking one last look at the barn-made-new-home for the last three and half odd weeks. Her feet felt leaden, her heart ached as bad as her side as she walked through the village for the last time. 

The thought of going back to the Mando's cold grey ship to return to cold black space after weeks in all this _green_ wasn't a comforting one to Lu. But as always, she was more than willing to roll with what was given her. She'd put on a brave face for Winta, praying to the Gods she didn't cry. 

Sorgan, and this village had changed her for the better. She would carry the story of this place with her. Her _song_ also now a part of this place, it's people having known her. They would carry her story, too. Even though she was sad to be leaving, Cara, Omera, Winta and the other children, Stoke and Caben. The Hallisket owner and all the other villagers here. They and their stories, and what happened here, would be with her _always_. 

Lu stood, the kid in the sled next to her already. Trying to ignore her aching heart so sadness didn't show on her face for the kids. She tried to keep her heart light and focus on enjoying her last hours in daylight before returning to the darkness of space. Letting the _songs_ of Sorgan wash over her. 

Cara had grabbed her bag, looking like she too, would be leaving the village as she walked up. She had mentioned in the tavern, seemingly half a lifetime ago, when they first had met, that she went at Mando because she had thought he had a fob on her. 

"Are you sure you don't want an escort?" She asked Mando, smiling. Her rich voice, warm and friendly. Lu was going to miss listening to her battle stories, her laughing and being half oblivious sometimes. The statue-esque veteran had become a person whose friendship Lu would value to the end of her days. 

"I appreciate the offer. But we're gonna bypass the town," He lifted a box into the sled, placing it next to the kid. Tone seeming relieved. "and head right to the Razor Crest." 

Cara's smile was tinged with sadness. But she held her arm out to Mando. 

"Well then. Until our paths cross." The Dropper told him as they shook hands.

"Until our paths cross." Mando echoed her.

Cara turned from him and hugged Lu gently. Her arms felt huge around her, their statures so different. The rebel was warm and strong. 

"We'll see each other again." She said, looking down at her. Lu smirked. 

"You know it." Lu replied, promising, looking up. 

Omera and Winta approached them. Lu immediately dropped to kneeling so she was eye to eye with the young girl. She looked _so_ sad. Her gaze down, arms at her side. She was trying her best to not let it show, to put in a brave face. Lu placed her gloved hands on her skinny shoulders. 

"Keep being brave, Winta." She told the girl. Tears welled in both their eyes. Lu said as much for herself as the tanned, dark curly haired girl. She needed to be brave, right now, too. 

" _W_ \- _Will_ you come see us again?" her child's voice was soft, tentative; unsure if she wanted to believe they'd return. She rubbed her eyes to cover her face while it scrunched with emotion. Lu hugged her close, and the little girl hugged her back.

"Of course, one day!" she answered, sounding far more confident than she felt about that. Lu reached into her pant pocket, hidden beneath her cloak, and grabbed the stone she had plucked off her dress. When they separated from their embrace, Lu put it in her palm with a wink. "Something special, from me to you." 

Winta looked at it in her hand with wonder, tears streaming. She looked like she wanted to say more, but ended up stepping back to put her face in Omera's skirts. Lu then stood, looking up at the beautiful avatar of motherhood before her. A newfound sister, a woman that was seemingly everything Lu wasn't. And everything that reminded her of what her mother had been like. In a strange way, Omera had unknowingly allowed her to find a strange closure on Enarra's death. There were no words adequate to properly sum that up in a goodbye to this woman whose had such a profound impact on her. 

"How am I going to remember when to eat without you to remind me?" Lu tried to joke, but her tone overflowed with grief she couldn't hold back. 

"I'll miss you, too." Omera's soft, knowing voice said. She was putting on a braver face than Lu, for certain. Omera hugged her tightly. She didn't want to let go, but Lu did. She kept her gaze down as she got up and sat in the sled next to the kid. Winta came up to the sled, hugging the child. Lu made like she was adjusting something next to her so the little ones wouldn't see her face crack with emotions she was barely keeping in check. 

"I'm going to miss you _so much_ " The young girl said. She and the child had become so close. Lu hoped that they would be able to see each other again, one day. Their bond was a special one; she had brought out so much in the little one. As the weeks went on he'd become more confident as he played with the other children. 

Lu couldn't look at Omera walking up to Mando. Her voice soft and warm, sad, tinged with a longing that Lu felt guilty about. 

"Thank you" She told him. Lu's heart broke. For Omera and Winta and the child. And the Mando, she had to admit. His posture wasn't stiff, but his body language made Lu feel like he didn't entirely want to leave himself. 

He turned from Omera and hopped in the sled, and it lurched into motion. The afternoon daylight was warm on her face. Songbirds called in the forest, and the lush air filled Lu's lungs. She waved silently as the village hollered their goodbyes. Anything Lu had left to say was caught in her throat. 

As the sled pulled away, Mando turned and looked at her, the kid between them. 

"Ready?" He asked, metallic voice not entirely all business, but he was trying to lighten the mood it seemed. Lu didn't know if he was asking her directly, or her and the kid. She sniffled and wiped the tears that managed to fall from her eyes. The bright blue Sorgani sky above felt like it was wrapping her in warm love as the village sounds faded from her ears. 

The only thing that saved her from breaking, was that this place put her heart partially back together before they had to say goodbye. 

"As much as I can be." Lu finally answered him, voice rough. For once, not caring what her voice revealed.


	13. The Conflicted Man's Interlude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Din recalls his temporary Sorgani life, to much of his own frustration. Torn over the weeks spent in peace.

Leaving Sorgan had indeed been both difficult and welcome. Din was relieved to be back in the Razor Crest after weeks in the village. Even if he had to pilot, Lu couldn't fly herself. Claiming she could punch in navcom data to get to particular places she knew but beyond that wasn't proficient. 

Lu had been quiet; she was sleeping just behind him in the second seat, kid nestled in her arms, napping too. The lights of hyperspace through the transparisteel of the cockpit illuminating them. He had to focus on keeping himself seated forward so he wouldn't be tempted to just look at her, in this light. She had been virtually silent as they had packed everything back into the ship. Leaving the village had been hard on her, even though she had been the first to speak up. Having said all of three sentences as they packed up and took off. Had been completely silent for a time before Din dared turn and look, only to find her slumped in her seat, eyes closed, asleep. Now sitting in a kind of solitude, his mind went back to the village and the weeks spent there. 

In that moment when he told her a hunter had found them, tracking the kid, her face had changed. He could see the gears turning in her mind, her face and eyes had changed multiple times in a few moments as she decided what to do. It took far less time than he had figured, he himself hadn't yet himself even come to terms with what a hunter with a fob meant. She appeared to cover that ground in the span of a few breaths. 

Lu had gone and seemingly made her decision on what to do in those few moments. Another thing he noticed of her, in the weeks on Sorgan. She was a person with seemingly an incredible capacity to not falter when faced with difficulties. Mandalorians have a word, “mandokar” which is the epitome of Mandalorian virtue. And in many ways, Lu very much fits the description of a “mandokarla”, a person who shares those virtues. A combination of tenacity, and loyalty, who valued living life and could aggressively defend it when needed. The more and more time he had spent around her, the more and more that became evident to Din.

Sorgan had been difficult for him, in that the peacefulness and stillness of the place didn't suit him, like it had her. But even more so that he found himself constantly torn. Unused to having the attention. Omera was a beautiful woman certainly, but her warmth and wholesome kind of innocence that came with simple agrarian life would be wasted on him. His body responded when she'd offered herself to him, certainly. But he could not have said yes. He knew he could not accept. Not just because he hadn't felt worthy, but because those sorts of entanglements would only serve to endanger the village further. There was no future for her, with him.

But when he thought about it, he wasn't sure if being drawn to Lu didn't play a part in his decision making. Initially, he'd been drawn because she was a mystery. Nearly four weeks later she was still a mystery, but one of a different kind. Still, he found a strange, easy understanding with her. Where other people were curious and only heard stories of Mandalorians, she claimed to know more than most; and the fact she didn't ask him a multitude of things made him certain she wasn't lying. He found himself wanting to know as much about her, as he felt she knew about him. He knew nothing of Kibahrri, never heard of them before Cara filled him in. 

The night of the battle with the Raiders, the random blaster fire heard at the end of the barricades had taken both he and Cara a moment to realize that it was too far away to be the front line. Running over, mind racing with what the hell was going on, he almost thought his visor was malfunctioning. Lu had moved _so_ fast. The shock of her having white braids instead of blonde waves was weird to him, and he'd been questioning if she'd been lying about being the singer in that moment.

Still, her hair had not been as big a shock as seeing her pull a maneuver like she did _while_ being injured, though. Had she not been injured, the big Klatooinian would've definitely been finished. Din had the finishing shot, the raider still trying to move and get up, but there was no way he'd have survived those injuries anyway. Vibroswords don't often leave survivors, even when not wielded by someone with obvious skill.

Din had not been proud of how… _attractive_ it made her, having been raised a warrior. She may be soft, and gentle and warm. But it definitely explained to Din why she said she couldn't shoot; she used stealth and surprise to her advantage. She didn't _need_ to know how. He still had no idea as to how she managed to change her appearance, but she was most certainly the singer, prowess with a blade and all. For all her softness, she was _deadly_ and carried an understated power to her that he wondered if her joking, casual, occasionally snarky attitude was meant to distract from. Knowing she had a similar power to the kid, made him feel that there might be something to that. And unfortunately for Din, her deadliness only _added_ to her attractiveness. 

One of the mornings, after she'd healed enough to start getting up and moving around herself he'd woken up in the barn to her singing quietly. It had still been somewhat dim outside. Her voice was sweet, but rich; the tune warm and happy and seemed to perfectly be framed by the sounds of the wilderness beyond the sleepy village; just far away enough sounding that he figured she was out on the porch. Frogs, insects, songbirds starting to sing. He had heard plenty of beautiful things in his travels. All kinds of voices and musicians; but something in her voice evoked something in him he couldn't explain. Din had never heard a voice like hers, and for fear of her stopping he stayed there, laying in his cot in the back, eyes closed beneath his helmet. She didn't use words, just notes, but he couldn't _not_ listen. When she suddenly stopped and laughed softly, his breath caught. And his suspicions put to rest. 

"Good catch, kiddo. But now you're going to ruin your breakfast." Lu's voice was happy but her tone still wry. The kid was out there with her, and the realization made his chest grow tight. She'd been singing so _happily_ , out there with the kid. Everything there had been happy. 

And then, a few nights later, where he watched and listened to her playing the Hallisket beyond the veil of the fire, and he'd been unable to look away from her; his chest had ached watching her play. Delicate glimmering fingers strumming and flicking the strings. Where she'd gotten tipsy with Cara and Omera and deliberately _touched_ him. He knew the look on her face, having seen it from all kinds before; it had been so dark, but she had been standing right in a slit of dim lamplight spilling in from outside. Perhaps she'd been more affected than she had anticipated, but Din saw it there in her eyes. _Desire_. It had sent him reeling and he spent the night in a fitful half-sleep after tucking the child in. He lay there, wanting her. Sitting in his pilot's chair, he couldn't help himself reliving that dream now.

Every time he closed his eyes behind the helmet to the ceiling of the barn, he saw her. Iridescent braids draped across her body, her blonde fringe framing her face; and when sleep finally took him, his dreams were everything he _wanted_ to do to her. Dreamt of laying her naked form down in his cot of the barn; roughspun sheets and blankets around them. His armour, helmet and all, cast aside; his dreams giving him what he couldn't have in reality. Held by her blue and green gaze, full need and lust. Fingernails running down his back as buried his face in her neck, laying kisses up and then back down her jaw. Tracing his lips across a faintly glimmering collar bone; her strange iridescent flash, just beneath the skin, calling for his touch. Arching against him as his mouth found a breast, her flesh giving way. Soft and warm. 

His dream-self slid his hands along her stomach, her skin softer than anything he could imagine, and then down between her legs, opening for him. _Wanting_ him. Finding her slicked wet with need of him. Rubbing her with his thumb before sliding two fingers inside as she gave a startled, lust filled cry. Being slow and taking care, basking in her breaths and moans; his fingers slowly working into her, back and forth; his tongue flicking her nipple. He could feel his own groans in his throat against her, having no idea if he'd made any sound in reality. Her fingers gripped in his hair as he moved his mouth over her body, down and down. Lu gasping as he slid his tongue over her mound, wicked flicks on the center of her pleasure, while he continued to stroke inside her with his fingers. Feeling her thighs quake against his shoulders and her muscles contract around his fingers as she climaxed, her voice sounding in ways only meant for _him._

In his dream, Lu cried his name against his lips as he entered her, manhood rock hard and throbbing like Din had never known. _Heat_ cascaded across his body, gripped in lust and need for her.

Startling him awake. Burning hot and sweating beneath his armour and leather; breathing heavy. The light in the barn around him was golden in the brightening morning. Sounds of activity outside, but still relatively quiet. Silence in the barn. Lu tended to be a later sleeper, so she was likely still in her own cot. Oblivious of what her dream-spectre and his had been engaging in. It took ages for his body to relax; he had no shame about taking _care_ of himself, but the lack of secure privacy and feeling too exposed by the gaps in the boards left him laying there. Suffering and unable to do anything about it, wishing desperately his cock would stop trying to bust his pants. 

By the time Lu woke, his body had calmed but he couldn't look at her as he left; leaving the kid to go find privacy in the woods to indeed go for a quick stroke so he didn't lose his mind. _Three weeks_ with two women, one who wanted him outright and one that appeared to have a need that being liquored up brought out enough to have her making moves. It had been so long and he so pent up that he'd nearly broken a branch in his grip of the tree he'd used to steady himself; his release so strong his legs could've given out, forcing himself to be silent. Afterwards only feeling strangely guilty, for wanting a woman that he wasn't sure truly wanted him, for being so pulled to her regardless of it. 

That night, after avoiding her all day, she apologized for potentially _offending_ him before he could try and lie about his tone the night before; he hadn't meant to sound so gruff but he'd been so startled and then instantly frustrated that he wanted to take her right then, that it came out in his voice. She'd been drunk, and likely didn't know what she was doing. It left him feeling weirdly bitter, that he'd not watched his reaction more carefully, though. 

_'Offended' ..._ Din grumbled internally, ruefully, frustrated that he was now sitting there with a half stiff dick in his pants recalling the dream; aching to bury his face in her braids, wrap her in himself. Instead, miserably staring out into hyperspace. And the first woman he'd dreamed of being _any_ kind of _intimate_ with, in nearly a decade, was sitting right behind him. Sleeping peacefully with the kid; unfortunately finding himself already nearly thinking _his_ kid. Which added another layer of complication to the whole predicament he found himself with the Kibahrri singer… made worse by Lu drunkenly pointing out he's acting like a _doting father_. 

His life in one single day on Nevarro has just gotten absolutely sideswiped, and then thrown for another loop living on Sorgan. That had happened twice now, with two different beings yet sharing a strange ability that he still didn't understand. 

Village life, and Lu sleeping plenty while healing didn't allow them to have much in the way of one on one conversations. Even post-battle when the village returned to normal she stayed occupied. Helping whenever she could, no matter the task. At the time, Din had been thankful. Ever since touching her wrist in the dim quiet of the hold after fleeing Nevarro, he'd found himself drawn to her. Such an innocent thing that stirred up and freed things he'd long buried; escalating as the days went by in the village. But now, they were stuck one on one in the ship until they made it their next stop and all he could think about was taking her right there on top of the control dash of the Razor Crest in a frenzy. 

Lu was everything his last love wasn't. But that still didn't mean he was open to even physical interactions. The Kibahrri woman was beautiful and attractive certainly, and she had certainly made a move towards him. But she'd been drunk, when sober she'd told him that he _should have_ taken Omera up; not to mention her own reasonings for not liking bounty hunters… 

Din didn't see sober-Lu feeling the same as drunken-Lu. He was struggling with wanting a woman so badly, while knowing damn well she may not see him as anything more than the kids surrogate; a dark part felt he didn't deserve her either. Too good and warm for a man like him. She was young and full of life and so easy to be around, and if he were being honest with himself, his attachments to her were running deeper than he'd anticipated.

The only thing that Din couldn't get his mind off of, was she gave no indication that his hunter status was a bother, now; when at first she seemed tentative and guarded. But how she reacted when he tried to tell her he was going to leave Sorgan and leave the kid behind was also something he hadn't expected from her.

She'd been so shocked, her tone almost sounded _hurt_ . It had only dawned on him now that she'd said her father had left; perhaps it just hit too close to home. But then he'd admitted that he didn't belong there; something in her eyes _pulled_ at him, something in her voice when it broke and told him he was _stupid_ and _did_ belong there made him absolutely want to kill that damn hunter again for interrupting. She was about to _touch_ him, he absolutely would have let her. But at least Cara had given that scum what he'd deserved… but it only served to cause a swirl of doubt and over all confusion about Lu. _Did_ she want him, or was it the liquor? Did he perhaps misread her face, and she meant her affection more platonic? He was certain he was potentially close to a decade older than her, perhaps… Maybe she saw him like a father, not a prospective bed partner? He was still a bounty hunter, too at the end of the day. 

Din knew he had to keep himself in extreme check. But he'd been sure she'd wanted him, at least, in that moment. But that meant she'd still been drunk. He couldn't stop himself from thinking about it, running in circles. Knew he shouldn't. The Maker most certainly testing his resolve and maybe downright testing his dedication to The Creed after years of strict adherence. And, while he had never considered himself a family man, he assumed he would have found someone in the Tribe, in eventuality. Din had proven to them he was a vital member, foundling or no. A fellow Mandalorian… the helmet caused problems with plenty of races, hiding one's face completely isn't common when you're human. Only Mandalorians understand what it is to _be_ Mandalorian. Now this human-Kibahrri woman that glimmered in the light and had a voice that made his chest ache seemed to know what being Mandalorian meant, changing his entire perspective on that. 

Alura seemed to always have an air of knowing; unlike him who was clueless about her people and customs. An air of understanding. Where the villagers and children had peppered him with questions at first, slowly declining as his presence lost its novelty, Lu never asked a single one about the armour or the 'stories' about his adopted people. It was, in a way, refreshing to be met by a person who was casual about it instead of rabidly curious. Really, she never seemed to ask anything of any one. She didn't complain, and made herself be a participant in the community while they were there. Cultivating respect and love from all the village people. In every way she was very much _mandokarla_. A perfect example of the word. 

He had never known a person like her. So full of joy and lightheartedness, but seemingly so sad and anxious at times. Putting others, especially children, above herself, regardless of the cost. Din imagined she probably didn't give much of a fuck about those raiders considering she had barely cared when he had stuck a blaster in her face. She didn't even need to go as far as she did, but she chose to meet the Raiders and engaged knowing she was still recovering from Nevarro.

Din checked the navcomputer of the Crest, feeling strangely melancholy, trying to distract himself from the constant circles of snapshots of his temporary Sorgani life. They were still going to be in hyperspace for a bit, so he continued to sit in silence. Cockpit lit from the steaks of light. The sounds of Lu and the kid snoozing a strange, comforting rhythm against the background noise of space, and the occasional beeping of the ship's systems. He crossed his arms and sat for how long he wasn't sure, dozing off for a small while, only to remain half-asleep from discomfort of sitting unmoving in the pilot's seat so long. But at some point, the kid started to stir. He turned and looked.

_Maker, why did you craft her like this?_ He had the strange thought that they fit together so well, for as different as they were. Her features were all delicate and evoked a need to gently brush a piece of blonde hair from her face so it didn't obstruct his view, though he stayed still. At first she had been striking to look at certainly, obviously beautiful by plenty of galactic standards. Delicate jaw, high cheekbones. In this light she almost seemed ethereal; a peaceful expression on her face. Coming to know her more, hearing her speak; even when it was accidentally, though sometimes intentionally, overtop of the ends of other people's sentences, had made it impossible for him to ignore.

Din had come to find her beauty had transformed to him. Now it wasn't just on a superficial level. But on a fundamental one. She wasn't just easy to look at, she was easy to _be around._ She was a beautiful _person_ . He wasn't sure what good he'd have done to earn her even as a friend, his desire to know her more than that aside. She brought so much _joy_ for a person who had seen, as far as he knew, more than her fair share of hardships and cruelty.

_She deserves so much more. A soft life. A beautiful one._ He couldn't picture her in a dark seedy bar singing to drunk patrons after watching her in the simple life on Sorgan. Bright and full of peace. 

Din realized in this moment that he had the impulse to shield her, cushion her from it now. She'd said she'd still had worse than a few broken ribs, physically. He'd heard the pain in her voice when he'd mistakenly overheard her talking with Cara and Omera. Of the half Zygerrian bounty hunter she'd saved from a starship crash, just to have him sell her to the shadowy, seedy underworld of the Galaxy. He couldn't fathom what she'd seen, and honestly didn't know if he could take knowing. And yet, all this seems to have not broken her at least not fully. He'd heard sadness in her voice, pain. Had seen a quiet grief in her eyes in moments of stillness, looking off to the distance when perhaps she didn't realize he was looking. She hides it well, always keeping it to herself, always rolling with what came her way and making the best of it.

He wanted to _protect_ her, so she didn't need to bare the weight of galactic cruelty any more. He couldn't stand the thought of any harm coming to her. He knew she didn't need him to defend her, but that didn't stop him from wanting to be the reason she didn't face it all alone. 

Din stayed turned around in his seat but cast his gaze down to the floor, mind awash with Lu in golden light that morning he accidentally scared her and she’d sparkled in the morning light and he’d been caught so off guard by how she looked to him, bare legged, he couldn't speak.

He rested an elbow on his knee, put his helmeted head in a gloved hand. Thoughts of her in the lamplight with the kid on her hip, then tucking him in. Of her singing to him, thinking no one else was awake to hear. Of weeks spent in the warm Sorgan daylight that he almost regretted not enjoying more of, now. Everything there was green and blue. Just like her eyes.

Lu, and Sorgan, was a break from bleak harshness and violence. He couldn't say he'd been unhappy, certainly. His life was hard but he had a sense of accomplishment, but kept it simple. Lived for the Tribe, not necessarily just for him, the individual. The first time he made a full choice based in selfishness, was breaking Guild code to take the kid; since he was a young, angry punk playing 'target' practice and acted like his helmet was what secured his Mandalorian status. He hadn't done a thing without thinking of the Tribe first, since those days. 

Age and maturity had him grow up and out of that. In a way he felt he wasted those years. Could have done so much more. Could have maybe found a way to get through to Xi'an and get her away from her damn brother. He'd loved that Maker forsaken crazy Twi'lek and she'd ruined him; She scorned him for not wanting to continue down that path. Angry and malicious. It'd been years since he even let him think her name, even longer since they parted. Lack of direction and honour was not the Mandalorian way. For a time, that was his life. But as it went on he didn't want it to be his future. 

He sighed heavily in his pilots seat. Nursing old emotional wounds and trying to sort out the interior struggle; aching and longing. Strangely, thinking of the Twi'lek wasn't as debilitating as he thought it may have been. 

"Regrets?" Lu's sleepy voice breaking through the monotony of hyperspace and ship ambience. "Or is the floor of the cockpit really _that_ interesting?" 

He looked at her, sitting up straight and dropping his hand. Thankful again she couldn't see his face. She had a tendency to surprise him, catch him off guard. She was smirking, again with a slight look of knowing behind her eyes. His body _stirred_ realizing she was awake. He clamped down mentally. 

"The floor is that interesting." He didn't know what to say, but he definitely didn't want to open anything that could lead to speaking openly of his past. Thinking of her had been one thing, speaking of Xi'an aloud would most certainly be another. His voice was deadpan, but only because he couldn't risk any other tone. 

"Uh huh." Lu retorted in that tone that told him she didn't believe him but wasn't going to press. 

"Not too much longer till we reach the Tatoo system. Stop in quickly to refuel, make some credits." He kept his tone business. 

"Tatooine? That mess? You know the Guild doesn't operate since Jabba was killed and shit went even shittier on that ball of dust, right? Mining guild and other mercantile dregs are all that's left." As usual, Lu surprised him by knowing anything about the goings on out this far. But she'd said that night she'd been sold to a crime lord who worked for the Hutts. She didn't seem keen on the idea. 

"The point _is_ the Guilds not there. But there'll still be credits to earn." He replied, nodding to her for emphasis. 

"True, true." She nodded. The kid stretched in her lap, yawning and blinking his eyes sleepily. She smiled down at him and Din found himself being reminded of what he'd been thinking about before she woke. Internally he made himself shut it all down. 

"How do you know?" He couldn't help but ask her.

"Jabba was a well known name in my industry. Out of the Hutts he tended to be the one that had the least favourable reputation for an employer, word gets around who to avoid. No one wanted to end up working there, he went through plenty of performers. But that aside, any place there's a cantina or a tavern that provides entertainment, I likely know something about it." Her eyes took that far away gaze, voice low. "The only way to be successful and not get killed, is to know what you're getting into. And how to get out." She said, tone sounding snarky and slightly bitter, her eyes hard and sad for a moment. The kid was more awake now, starting to fidget. She focused on him to possibly distract herself.

"Won't be there longer than needed." He offered. Trying to be soft and yet casual himself, for her benefit. She yawned, delicately covering her face with the back of a gloved hand. She was back to being an obscure dark form, hair hidden in her headscarf of bluey-grey. Only now he knew what shape she had beneath. Petite and dainty. She looked as though she wanted to say something, but instead looked back down at the kid in her lap, becoming more awake, smiling down at him. He made some sleepy gurgles, and rubbed an eye. A silence grew between them. Din stretched a bit in his seat as the kid started fussing. He tried keeping his focus on the kid, instead of her. 

"He's hungry. I'm going to take him below for food." Lu said to him. "Yes! You _are_ a hungry little man." She said to the kid as he looked up at her, making some questioning noises. Her smile was sweet as she talked to the kid and it made something deep in him swell.

_Maker. Why did you send her my way?_ He couldn't help but feel he was undeserving of so much goodness; having been a man who lived in moral grey areas and, comfortably so. He'd done terrible things and he felt Lu would not be able to see him in the same light if she knew; her experiences with people in his line of work tumultuous. Another thing to remind him to be in extreme check, he needed to make sure he kept himself distant. Lu deserved better than him, and he knew it. 

It wasn't until she stood with the kid in her arms that he realized he'd been staring, mulling the conflict within himself. She looked to him, questioning but not saying anything. She took the few steps to the back of the cockpit, about to descend down. He couldn't help but watch her. 

"Are you hungry? Want anything brought up so you can eat?" He nearly jumped so lost in his thoughts, not expecting her to say anything more. Absolutely not expecting her to ask if he needed anything. She was looking back at him, kid on her hip. He hadn't thought of food, but at the offer, yes he was hungry. He'd eaten last just before they left Sorgan. 

"I could eat. But no rush." He said carefully. Even after weeks of being provided for by Omera leaving meals for him in private, it still felt out of place to ask. He didn't want to burden her. She must have heard it in his voice though, because she gave him a look. A half-sad smirk as if to say 'don't be stupid'. She disappeared down into the hold, kid in her arm. 

He turned his seat around and went back to staring out to hyperspace. Sighing heavily. 

_Maker. Have mercy._ His mind continued to run in the same circles it had for the past few hours. Sorgan. Lu. And back again. His dream, her voice. After a few minutes, hearing her speaking with the kid below, she surprised him again by coming back up sooner than he figured. A small clay bowl in her hands, full of fruit and dried meat and bread from the foodstuffs that the village had given them when they departed. 

"Gotta get through the fruits before they spoil. They really stocked us up. Especially the meat, which is good for the kid." Her tone was all business, and yet he got the sense something was bothering her. Lu passed the bowl to him, having spun back around in his seat and stood. He crossed the distance, not wanting to feel like she was serving him. 

When he went to take the bowl from her, his hand grazed the back of hers. He could feel her warmth through the leather of his gloves. He hadn't meant to, momentarily not being aware of himself, distracted by her. And Maker have mercy, she didn't flinch or make any motion that it was a bother. Just looked up at him and smiled. There were too many things in her face to make out. 

"Eat up, take your time. The kid and I will eat below." Lu told him, He wanted to stop her as she turned to return to the hold, but he just stood there. Silent. "Let us know when you're done." her smile seemed knowing and yet unsure all at the same time. He both wanted to know what she was thinking, and didn't. He stood there a moment in silence after she descended back down. 

He sat back in his seat, staring down towards the hold a moment. Eventually he turned back, slipped his helmet off up over his head, placing it in the control dash; he squeezed the bridge of his nose to relieve some pressure behind his eyes. Knowing damn well the remainder of the journey to Tatooine was going to be a long one, and not just because of the distance. 

Din ate, unable to stop thinking that he'd rather be using his mouth to please her. To taste her lips, instead of food.


	14. The Twin Suns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arrival on Tatooine~

The Mandalorian had said her name in his sleep. 

Lu wanted to kick herself for how her body had reacted; awash with lust. She'd been awake, eyes just closed straining to hear  _ The Song _ amongst the noise of hyperspace and the ship. He'd been dozing in front of her, in the pilot's seat. She could hear his quiet, sleepy breaths, the ever present metallic sheen from the modulator over them. But he'd definitely been asleep, not the full deep sleep where the rhythm was slow and he'd occasionally snore. She'd heard that only  _ once _ the entire time on Sorgan. Not an unpleasant sound, entirely. If Lu wanted to be honest with herself she'd be telling herself she's in trouble for not finding it annoying. She shouldn't have let herself get so damn friendly. 

_ He's so good. Why'd he have to be a _ good _ person?  _

In no way did she fool herself. She'd seen him kill dozens of men already. He's likely killed hundreds. He's a bounty hunter and makes his means by being top dog in a very, very dangerous world. Lu knew damn well that it's a  _ morally complicated _ profession. Operating outside of New Republic jurisdictions, doing the work left that the more  _ official _ judicial capacities wouldn't dare touch, in most cases. 

But back on Nevarro, she'd gambled. She bet on him as a Mandalorian; Bet on a thousand year old allegiance between Kibahrr and Mandalore.  _ Not  _ on him as a bounty hunter, in that moment with his blaster in her face and her knife at his throat. And so far, looks like she was coming up ahead. She found herself praying this time, maybe just this time, her luck wasn't going to run out. She was becoming more and more confident in him, but she was now worried physical attraction was clouding her senses. 

_ What  _ in the Galaxy was wrong with her when she'd yet to see an inch of his skin, and could  _ never _ see his face? To look in his eyes and know what colour they were? To know him like that would open herself to  _ hearing _ his  _ song _ fully, and she didn't know if she could take it. The beskar  _ rang _ in her senses, she'd have no doubt that she'd get a better grasp on who he was if she was ever in his presence with less of it on. But never seeing his eyes, never looking beyond that veil  _ into _ a person? How could she be drawn to him like this? His actions spoke plenty, already. But on a level, she couldn't deny she  _ wanted _ to  _ see _ and  _ hear _ him fully.

Lu felt shame. She ate her meal in the hold with the kid in near silence. Mulling it all over in her mind. 

She was still in a strange way, mad at him too, for nearly bailing on the kid. He was just going to ditch the little guy and take off. But then, she'd understood part of his reasoning. Though she may not agree with  _ all _ of it. Lu did not agree with being so inflexible with creeds and dogmas and falling into the trappings of traditions that one sacrifices too much. He's cut himself off, a man who had a beautiful widow offer herself to him  _ and he didn't take it _ . What man does that? And then to try and turn tail and run on the kid thinking that he  _ didn't belong _ in a place like the village on Sorgan. Didn't  _ deserve _ a place like that nor deserve a woman like Omera, too, now that she thought about his tone. Tradition and Creed taken too far and you end up like Kibahrri, like Enarra Jinn.

The Mandalorian was a man so dedicated to his ancient Creed he actively denies  _ living _ . He'd even  _ backed away _ when she'd touched him that night. She'd been drunk, vulnerable, he could have done whatever; she would have let him, she wanted him. But  _ he _ didn't know that. She hadn't let herself have a sip of liquor in the presence of other people in years because it makes one vulnerable. She hadn't even thought twice about it. Again the Mandalorian proving he was a better man than most, proclivity to violence aside. 

And even herself aside, not taking Omera up made no sense to Lu. None. Had their roles been reversed  _ she  _ absolutely would have literally grabbed Omera and ran off right then. Everything a good man should want in a woman. Lu was absolutely not of her caliber. Not wife material, never had been. She had grown up moving around, spent most her time in hiding, or on starships to go hide somewhere new. Too snarky, opinionated, stubborn; too eager to go run headlong into a fight to defend people who couldn't defend themselves. 

Lu had been the last Kibahrri born on their natural home planet. Before the Empire came and Enarra had to poison what raw kyber crystals remained in the earth to keep them from using it to power their weapons and the secret experimentation she had long begun to suspect had been going on. Letting her  _ Sadness _ , and  _ Anger _ take what was left on their tidally-locked homeworld that Kibahrr lore had dubbed "The seed of the Galaxy"; the place from where all kyber in the universe 'originated'. Kibahrri literally have kyber in their blood, the Gods crafting her people from the crystals themselves. Or so the legends go. 

The starfire, the  _ kyber _ in her blood made her for adventure, for battle and leadership. Had seen her chosen to continue a line of spiritual leaders that her own people had a kind of disdain for, but there was no one else they thought suitable for the role. Lu had been born to a House not meant for the simple life of homemaking. Not that it didn't mean she didn't envy and respect that life. If anything a part of her wished she had been born to another Line, another House. One of the others that wasn't so old, that carried so much baggage. One where she could have just been a simple Kibahrr trying to survive, without all the extra shit making that even more complicated. More guilt ridden.

"Oh _Light_ forsake me. _GET_ _out_ of there! You goblin!" She suddenly said with a gasp. The child had gotten into her bag while she'd been deep in her thoughts. She dropped her clay bowl of food, got up off the small crate she'd been sitting on, and marched over, taking the small pot from his hands and twisting the lid back on. Then picking him up, holding him up at her face level. 

A tiny, green, three fingered hand smeared cosmetic paint on her cheek with a splat as she held him up in front of her; he made a happy noise. She'd caught him just as he'd put a hand in it. He liked touching her face so she should have seen this coming. She flinched, eye clamped shut so none got in. 

"Serves me right for not paying attention to you, I guess. Huh, buddy?" She said out loud, tone dry. Absolutely unamused with the antics, and herself for not being mindful of the present. The kid took his hands off her face, the one leaving a thick cosmetic smudge, bright white. Then proceeded to unceremoniously put them together, smudging and smooshing. Looking at her, expression rather pleased with himself. She groaned and looked at the durasteel ceiling of the Mando's ship. The Razor Crest he'd called it. 

_ Qui-Gon would be so disappointed.  _ She couldn't help but think ruefully to herself. 

"What's going on down there?" Mando's metallic voice came from above. He must have finished eating. 

"Just being reminded that we really can't let this little guy out of one's direct line of sight for a  _ second. _ " Lu sighed, walking back over, kid in arms. Putting the kid on the crate she had him seated on, and stepping over to the privy. Mando dropped down from the cockpit above as she grabbed a cloth.

"What did he get into?" Mando sounded as unimpressed as she felt as he stood there, tone dry as their impending stop. Imposing form and all, T vizor aimed looking down, hands on his hips. She stepped past and kneeled in front of the kid, beginning to wipe his hands. She looked up at Mando for a moment, forgetting she had white on her cheek, too. Folding the cloth for fresh sides of material. The products were meant to last through sweat so it took some work getting off his little fingers. 

"Uh." 

"What?" She grumbled.  _ Gods be good I can't believe I used to like having this shit on my face.  _ It'd been a long time, but the artistry in it had always appealed. Mando stood silent there as she got it all off the kids hands and then went to itch her cheek with the back of her hand as she stood back up, white-cosmetic covered cloth in her gloved hands, forgetting that the kid had touched her face. She smeared it, feeling it streak. 

" _ Gods damnit. _ " Lu swore. White paste all over her gloves and cheek. The cloth covered. 

"Tried to warn you." The Mando's tone was still dry, but Lu couldn't miss the humour in his tone. She sighed and gave him a wilted look, rubbing her cheek and moving back over to the privy. A small mirror enough to see most of one's face was there. She scrubbed the last of it off. 

Mando walked past the kid and went to pick up her bag. She heard something metallic hit the floor. 

"Uh. There's a pot here? And Jewelry? He pulled stuff out." The Mandalorian was a man who could be deadly, intimidating. A man who travelled all over the Outer Rim and likely other parts of the galaxy, too. And yet, and yet he really could be so oblivious sometimes. 

Lu looked and the Mando had her bag in one hand, top open, in the other one of the  _ smaller _ pieces. Literal rhinestone strings, meant to cover  _ nothing _ where she would wear it, like  _ underwear _ . She snorted, trying to hide the laugh threatening to surface while also ignoring her brain's desire to go to  _ very _ dirty places. He was oblivious as to where on her body that would be worn. In his defense, it was rather small and looked nothing like underwear Lu supposed. 

"Uh. Yeah.  _ Jewelry… _ of a kind. Here." She marched over and took it from him, shoving it back inside the bag along with the pot of paint. Lu then went and sat back on her crate in front of the kid, plunking her bag back down beside her. His posture said he was confused. She just tried to clamp down so she didn't show in her face how hilarious that just was. 

"We'll be on Tatooine in about an hour." He said, conveniently changing the subject. Though, to one Lu really didn't want to think about. She didn't know if she was ready for what the Mandalorian was going to want to do, saying her name in his sleep or no. As if he knew where her brain was going, he surprisingly continued. 

"Gonna need you to stay at the ship and watch the kid. I'll go see what can be found for some work." His tone was matter-of-fact. "... If you don't mind? I figure since you're still healing-" The armoured man added after a breath, sounding almost tentative. 

"Of course, not a problem." Lu told him, perhaps with a smidge too quickly, cutting him off. She didn't want to seem eager lest he get the wrong idea. Or… Well. What idea she wanted to give him, she didn't know. Lu could unpack that later. She smiled at him, looking up from her spot on the crate. The child made a happy noise and made up-arms at the Mando, having set his clay bowl on the crate next to himself. 

The Mandalorian gave that half-disgruntled sigh of resignation and shook his head. Lu smirked. 

"Take him up. I'll finish cleaning up here and join you." She told him as he made his way over, picking the child up. Little hands gently pat-patting on the beskar of his helmet happily, ears perked up. Mando nodded at her stiffly, and ascended up the ladder, the tattered end of his cape flicking as he moved. 

Lu once again turned her gaze to the ceiling. 

_ Light, please. Please let me get over whatever he's doing to me so I can focus.  _ She prayed, ruefully, feeling sorry for herself. She sighed and began finishing tidying up from their meal. 

Sometime later, all three of them back up in the cockpit, Mando was preparing to drop out of hyperspace. The kid in her lap, Lu strapped into the seat just behind the armoured form of the Mando. He was staring off ahead while checking systems. His big, yellow fingered gloved hands moving about the control dash. It all looked a mystery to Lu. Flying was not her forte. 

They came out of hyperspace, the binary stars of the Tatoo system and Tatooine up ahead some ways yet to go. They were only in sub-light a few minutes before Lu had a sudden sense of foreboding again just as warning lights flashed on the dash.

" _Dank_ _ferrick_ we've been locked on." Mando's deep voice was harsh and half-startled half-frustrated; he quickly and concisely flipped switches and made adjustments. "Stay in your seat. Hold tight. This might get rough."

"On it." Lu double checked she was secure, and she wrapped the kid up in one of the front panels of her cloak wrapping him in her arms to keep him secure. And then she felt the ship accelerate as Mando slammed engines to full. Sending a ripple of pain in her chest from her ribs. 

Red heavy blaster fire screeched, glancing across the durasteel of the Razor Crest as the other ship shot at them from behind. Mando's armour reflected the red lights menacingly. He flew the ship well, with ease, obviously comfortable with handling it. Lu wished she could be more comfortable, the straining in her seat was causing her ribs to shoot pains across her chest. The kid made some hushed, uncomfortable noises as she held onto him, but they both did their best to stay quiet for Mando to focus. 

He was intent. And  _ intense.  _ His breathing was heavy, but not panicked. Lu was no stranger to dangerous encounters in space with all kinds of scum and villainy in the Galaxy, but she felt far calmer than she thought she should, she continued to concentrate and hold onto  _ Serenity _ . A man's voice came over the ship's radio. 

"Hand over the child, Mando." the voice was dripping with confidence not even the static of the comms could hide. "I might let you live." 

More blaster fire erupted as Mando evaded. He made some noises in frustration as he continued to push the ship as much as he could. Lu was going to definitely be hurting plenty more after this, she was gritting her teeth to stop herself from making noise with every sharp adjustment.

_ Light forsake these fucking Hunters.  _ Lu grumbled to herself, cradling the kid. Even though this was scary and he was uncomfortable he was relatively calm. Though with another blast and the control dash shorted, electricity crackled and the smell of ozone and faint burning came through the cockpit. The kid whined as an alarm blared. 

"Hold on." Mando commanded, though his tone reassuring. Seems he had something in mind. 

"I can bring you in warm, or I can bring you in cold." Said the arrogant Hunter again over the radio. Mando straightened out, and Lu got the sense he was baiting the Hunter. 

"That's  _ my _ line." Mando's voice was cold and menacing. Lu was suddenly slammed into her seat's harness, stopping her as Mando suddenly pulled the engines back to a stop. The enemy pilot flew right over the Crest, grazing the top of the ship. 

Mando got the ship in the sights of the Crest, and fired the double heavy cannons. The small starfighter exploded into a brilliant flash as the pilots' scream came over the radio, cutting off. Lu sucked in air and felt like someone had stuck a knife in between her ribs. Wincing while trying to keep a hold on the kid. 

Mando was already flicking switches and dealing with the alarms and the issues of the ship. 

"Losing fuel…" He said idly. The engine and the ship powers down, Mando leaving life support in the cockpit running, and not much else. He turned in his seat, looking at her. "You okay?"

"Ye-Yeah. Just need a moment." Lu told him, voice weak. Unable to breath deep, the sharp stabbing pain being too much. She didn't think anything was rebroken, but her body was most certainly unhappy. He reached over and grabbed the kid, who giggled. The ship was listing now, ambling towards Tatooine. She carefully sat back in her seat, concentrating on relaxing her body as best she could. 

"Hope there's a decent mechanic…" Mando said idly. Lu huffed, feeling annoyed. There went the supposed credits needed to be made. She had some herself, but had intended on saving that to replenish Mando's paltry Med kit. The man seriously must love torturing himself because his main source of "medical aid" was nothing more than a cauterizer and some antiseptics and a few bandages. No bacta, and she'd cleaned out the last few pain blockers he'd had left in there. Left much to be desired and left her wondering if it was sheer dumb luck he's made it this far in his life without losing a limb to gangrene. But then, maybe he had. Lu wouldn't know having never seen any skin or anything but beskar and leather. 

Tatooine slowly grew larger in the transparisteel of the cockpit. Orangey-gold with the faint blue ring of an oxygen rich atmosphere, binary stars beyond. 

Eventually when the planet dominated their view instead of vast black space, the control tower called out, breaking the silence in the cockpit. The kid had unceremoniously fallen asleep back in Mando's lap. Lu was relieved they'd made it, listing along had been a chore. And then momentarily really unsure if Mando was going to be able to land the ship in its current state as they came through the atmosphere and began their descent. 

_ Gods don't let me die on Tatooine.  _ She prayed wryly. 

But Mando surprised her and, managed by some Light blessed miracle, landed on the dusty planet. Mos Eisley, docking bay thirty five. 

Lu had forgotten all about her earlier trepidation with an inner facepalm.  _ Tatooine _ . 

She's been here once, as a child. Enarra had brought her here to visit someone. Lu had only been barely about a year old or so. But she couldn't help but feel that this was most certainly the Gods at play. Here she was again having something tie her back to Enarra and her life.

Enarra had taken up exile here when she was young. Living with a slave boy and his mother. By some twist of fate Qui-Gon had come by the dusty, hot planet. He and his padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi; who himself had gone into hiding on Tatooine upon the Empire's rise. Lu didn't remember him, they'd been here barely a day. She could only vaguely recall sensations, colours. A brown robe and warm, gentle embrace of a man's arms. A grand, wise and yet, mischievous voice, full of kindness. 

Lu was feeling awash in too many things; but at least it was a distraction from her inappropriate thoughts of the Mandalorian.

They went down in the hold, Lu stifling a groan as she descended down the ladder. Her ribs protesting every movement. Mando carefully placed the sleeping child in his bunk, then closing the privacy door. 

"Here we are." Mando said as he pressed the switch for the side hatch and the absolutely desiccated air felt like it wanted to rip the moisture right out of her mouth the moment it opened to the golden sand beyond the durasteel. The  _ song _ of Tatooine sounded pulled back, industrious, but strange and almost off-kilter to Lu's ears. And it was  _ hot _ . So hot Lu was hoping her natural fire-resistance from her Kibahrri blood would benefit her here. Kyber is naturally impervious to heat; she hoped her headscarf didn't cause her issues, though all the materials she wore breathed well. And she was again thanking Omera, the bluey-grey would not absorb so much of the heat compared to her previous black one.

Lu stayed back inside a moment, checking her headscarf, grabbing the small satchel of credits she had stashed in her bag and tucking it in her pocket. First thing on her docket was to deal with that med kit. She could hear a nasally woman's voice, harsh and sarcastic. Lu was probably going to like her. She and Mando discussed repairs outside. 

Lu had to shield her eyes as she walked down the ramp, the binary stars of the Tatoo system high above them. The air was oppressively hot, Lu's head immediately began pounding and she felt something  _ pushing _ at her senses. Her metallic foot falls on the ramp down ringing in her legs. She sucked in a breath. Her mind flooded with the  _ sound  _ of  _ The Song _ , uncontrolled and unasked. Her boots hit the sands of Tatooine and suddenly she felt  _ pulled _ . 

Lu blinked. The sky was black above her, stars twinkling. Everywhere around her, sand dunes. She suddenly wasn't in Mos Eisley. 

_ The Dune Sea? _ She asked herself, confusion bubbling up. Lu had no idea what was going on. The sounds of a fire crackled from behind and she spun around, spooked. The crackling and popping echoed strangely like she was hearing it beyond some cosmic veil. A grey bearded man sat beyond a small fire wearing a hooded cloak, just in front of her. The hood obscured most of his face. The light of the fire washed out her vision so she couldn't see if it had colour. The hood moved, and the man looked up to her. He had blue eyes, grey hair matching the beard. But she did not know his face, though he felt familiar, like she should. He looked at her as if he could see her and smiled warmly. Smiled  _ sadly.  _

Lu blinked, suddenly exhaling. She was back in the docking bay, in the blazing heat of the daylight. Her brain felt like it wanted to escape, but the overwhelming rush of  _ The Song _ was fading. She sucked in the dry desert air, trying to return oxygen to her lungs; her side and shoulders burning with pain. She stumbled forward, but caught herself on a short stack of crates. Clenched her eyes shut, gritting her teeth and wincing. Swallowing any noises trying to escape her throat. 

"Hey. You okay?" Mando's metallic rumble was half concerned and half frustrated from up at the front of the ship. "Lu?" He called after she didn't respond. 

"Can't take the heat?" the sharp woman's voice asked. Mando marched the few steps over from where they'd been standing. 

"It-it's okay. I'm okay." Lu managed to choke out, forcing her breath to slow. She called on  _ Serenity _ and was answered. She felt Mando's large hand on her arm. She steadied her breath and managed to turn her head and look up at him. 

"You don't look okay." His tone was gruff. Lu didn't have it in her to pay attention enough to discern everything in his voice. "Hey, there a medic around here?" He turned himself back around, looking to the docking bay staff, his hand still on her. 

"Not any doctory types no. A shop sells supplies but bacta ain't cheap and I'd like to know how you plan on payin' for all this work?" 

"I got 500 Imperial credits." Mando told her. Lu managed to look past him, to the strange woman with the sarcastic voice. It wasn't often Lu sees a person  _ shorter _ than her, but this woman was, and by no small degree. The biggest bunch of reddish brown curls she'd ever seen, a complete tangle of chaos atop her head. Dusty jumpsuit, fingers and face smudged with machine grease, manifest in her hands. Her  _ song  _ was shrewd sounding, industrious, comical and reliable to Lu's ears. She looked absolutely unimpressed and unintimidated by the large Mandalorian at Lu's side. 

"That's all you got?" She made a sound and looked over to a throuple of pit droids. "Well, what you guys think?" 

The droids chattered amongst themselves a moment, then one chattered to her in an affirmation. She looked back over to Lu and Mando. 

"That should at least cover the hangar." She griped. 

"I'll get you your money." Mando told her stiffly, looking back to Lu. 

"Hmm. I've heard that before." She only seemed half convinced. Lu was starting to get her head righted, didn't feel like it was going to burst out her ears, at least. Mando gently pulled on her arm, guiding her. Lu let herself be led, focusing on keeping her feet underneath her. 

_ Light, why did I find him just to end up having this shit happen and get beat so much? I'd never gotten into this much trouble…  _ She complained internally. 

"Just remember…" Mando pointed at the strange woman, his voice business but trailing off. The threat sounded empty to Lu. 

"Yeah.  _ No droids _ ." The curly haired woman said, tone dry and unimpressed. I heard ya. You don't have to say it twice."

Mando marched, Lu followed, his hand on her arm still. Firm, but not hard. He was unsettled, and Lu didn't blame him for it. 

"What happened back there?" He asked, sounding strained yet distracted. His pace slowed once they were in the street. Mando's head on a swivel looking around, helmet turning and checking corners. Probably for potential threats and this shop with med gear, Lu figured. 

"I'm n-not sure… a vision? I think." Lu put her face in her opposing hand. Trying to figure out what it meant, squeezing at her temples. "It's not the first time it's happened. B-but it was unexpected." 

"A vision?" Mando asked but still sounded like he wasn't sure he wanted an answer. Lu didn't know if she wanted to give him a full answer, either. She pinched the bridge of her nose. 

"Nothing bad. Just… Strange. I'll think about it when I get back to the shi- _oh_ _fuck_ Mando the _baby!_ " Sudden panic washed over her at the realization that they'd left him unattended and she halted. Mando kept going and gently tugged her arm. 

"He was sleeping. You hurry back after I leave you at this shop." Mando said quickly, calmly. "You're injured." His voice was more earnest than she'd heard from him before. Mando stopped and looked at her a moment when she didn't move. His armour reflected the gold and blue hues of Tatooine, sky and sand. His leathers were rich toned browns, his woolen cape dark against the brightly lit desert. His gloved hand still gently wrapped around her bicep. He was  _ so big  _ compared to her. A comforting sight, as opposed to an intimidating one like when they’d first met.

"It's-" Lu started. Trying to tell him she was okay enough to go back and wait. 

"I trust you-with him. I need you at your best to defend him while I'm gone. So-get supplies, and get back to the ship." He said plainly, cutting her off, though still clumsily. His tone measured, but warmth was there. It rang  _ true _ in Lu's ears; she hoped it wasn't the heat messing with her. She stared openly at him, in a kind of awe that he would admit  _ that  _ so openly, here, like this. Before she could say anything in return, he turned away from her, looking forward again and continued. She could only follow, her legs feeling weak… And not just because of the pain in her chest from aggravated, healing ribs. They found the shop, a small little run down open-air hovel. The shade under the canvas awning at the front was welcome. 

"Here. Buy what you can-then get back. I'll return when I have something." Mando's T visor was looking down at her, putting some imperial credits in her hand. "Don't be long."

"Same goes for you." She told him, smiling up at him to try and cover the pain she was in; ribs aching. He nodded stiffly, turned abruptly and silently stalked off. That stride of his all business, saying he was dangerous without making a sound. She watched till he turned a corner and disappeared from sight, tattered cape billowing behind him. She heaved a sigh, feeling a little unsettled herself, wincing slightly. 

She entered the cooler shade of the shop, stepping down into the main area. An elderly, wrinkled man with shaky hands behind a desk. White eyebrows dropping and skin so loose he nearly looked like his eyes weren't open. Fortunately, he spoke Basic. Lu was disappointed to find there wasn't bacta infusion to be had. She stocked up on everything she could. Using up her New Republic, and the Imperial credits Mando gave her. A full new medkit stocked to the brim. A newer cauterizer that looked infinitely more reliable than the old one Mando had. Even got lucky and there were hypo sprays to clean wounds, anaesthetics, and neuroblockers for pain; much better than the regular tabs though she replaced those too; bandages and other various tools and things all in a canvas bag tied shut. The old man was happy to send her on her way, having just made a killing. The supplies were good, but Mos Eisley was practically dead. 

Where once this had been a bustling space port, the streets felt empty. After Jabba's death and the departure of the Hunter's Guild, there wasn't much else to bring people down to this planet. 

Lu wasted no time returning back to the docking bay. Nerves getting to her as she felt she'd been gone too long. The kid was sleeping, sure, but likely not for long having napped plenty during the hours in hyperspace. She walked as quickly as she could without causing herself more discomfort. After a time she found docking bay thirty five again. She went to go put everything back inside the ship but got stopped by the short docking bay woman holding  _ the baby _ . 

"Oh Gods I'm so sorry-" Lu started, embarrassed, dropping the bag of supplies and going over to her. 

"Oh well there goes my plan to charge the Mandalorian extra for watching you." The woman looked down at the child, he made a contented sound. The woman was talking to the kid but her tone implied it was definitely for Lu to hear. She smirked. 

"Ah. I am in the presence of a shrewd business woman." Lu said kindly. "Listen. You can't charge him extra for watching the kid, no. But how about a discount if I help you with repairs?" 

"Ya any good with starship? You don't look the type." She said, raising an auburn eyebrow. Her tone dripping with doubt. 

"Not particularly. But I learn fast and don't have issues taking direction." the curly haired woman scoffed at that. 

"Figures. But I suppose it's better than doing it all myself.  _ No droids.  _ Pfft." She said, complaining. "The names Peli."

The short woman stuck her hand out to Lu, and she shook it. Lu smiled at her

"I'm Lu. It's nice to meet you, Peli." She said. Peli scoffed at her, handing the kid over. 

"I think he's hungry." Peli said. Lu couldn't help but smirk. The kid has a habit of making people want to care for him, and it was obvious to Lu, Peli was already enamoured with the little guy. It was cute. The kid made some happy sounds, looking up at Lu from where she held him on her hip. 

Peli, Lu, the kid all sat in the shade of her dusty-windowed office of the docking bay and ate some lunch after having helped do work on the Crest. Lu grabbed food from the ship, dropping the bag of med supplies inside to organise later. Sharing a couple fruits with Peli. The woman was absolutely over the moon about the fruit, fresh food like this hard to come by on the double-sunned desert planet. Wouldn't hurt to share the wealth considering it would all spoil and go to waste if it didn't get eaten. 

Peli's  _ song _ was sharp, but humoured. Gruff but good-natured. An overall good woman, by Lu's assessment. A hard woman for a hard place, but her heart was still soft. She barked orders at her trio of pit droids, letting them continue to putter around. Yelling when one got too close to the ship, reminding them Mando said no droids. 

The heat was so oppressive it sucked the energy right out of Lu, fire resistance or no. After eating, the kid ended up drifting off on another nap in Peli's lap. Peli also started dozing, and Lu was feeling her eyelids getting heavy. Her black leathers and canvas weren't oppressive but definitely didn't help if she was in the direct light for a while. She'd even gone without her cloak, now, draping it on the back of the small chair she sat on. Headscarf still secured around her head, concealing her white braids, draped over her shoulders. 

Lu had no idea how long it'd been, or how long she'd been napping with her elbow on Peli's desk and her chin supported by her hand. Suddenly Mando's voice broke through, angry and startled. 

"Hey!" His metallic voice was angry, storming down the side of the Razor Crest. Peli jumped. 

"I'm awake! I'm awake!" she barked back with a gasp. The baby started crying, startled awake himself. Lu couldn't help but jump herself, startled more by Peli than Mando. Peli immediately tried to hush the kid as she walked out of her office, bouncing him in her arms like a human baby. Lu stayed seated, aching and just wanting to go back to sleep. Damn the heat.

"Where are they?" He demanded angrily. Metallic rumble menacing, edged with tension. Lu was surprised it was  _ they _ instead of just  _ he  _ or  _ the baby _ . She was automatically included? Lu stopped herself before she let her imagination run away on her. 

"Quiet!" She barked at him. Shushing the baby. "Ohh you woke him up! Do you have any idea how long it took me to get him to sleep?" 

"Give him to me." Mando demanded, tone less angry, but still not totally impressed. Peli however, impressed Lu by not giving a shit. Mando made like he was just going to take him from her. 

" _ Not _ so fast." Peli said, Lu watching her outright turn from Mando's hands. Lu really liked her, it's not often people didn't balk when the Mando was clearly pissed. She couldn't help but take some satisfaction in it watching from behind the dusty transparisteel window. 

"You can't just leave a child all alone like that. You two got a lot to learn about raisin' a young one." Peli griped at him. Mando stayed silent, his posture changed, clearly being admonished by the short firecracker of a woman was effective. He didn't say anything, just gave a nod and a bit of a shrug as if to admit Peli wasn't wrong. 

_ Wait did she say 'you two?'  _ Lu suddenly thought to herself. But Mando's voice distracted her before she could bother going down that mental path. 

"Where's Lu?" He asked, metallic rasp trying to change the subject. 

"I'm here." She called from the office, getting up begrudgingly. Sore and tired and already had enough of the heat. Lu idly wondered how okay Mando was doing under all that, but the armour had electronics, she assumed he had a degree of climate control in there for just these occasions. Lu stepped out into the light and instantly felt the scorching rays, sucking energy right out of her; Mando's posture immediately looked more relaxed upon seeing her. Peli groaned impatiently, walking over to the power banks and diagnostic computers she had hooked into the Razor Crest. 

" _ Anyway _ . I started the repair on the fuel leak." She started, tone dry, the kid in one arm and flicking some switches on the computers with the other. Lu joined the three of them, she should go through the med supplies anyway.

"There you go." Peli handed the kid back over to Mando, cooing happily. "I had a couple setbacks I want to talk to you about. You know, I didn't use any droids.  _ Like you asked,  _ so it took a lot longer than I expected." She went on, walking along the ship pointing things out. 

"But I figured you were good for the money, since you have an extra mouth to feed." She gestured at the kid in his arms while giving Lu a side-eyed look. Mando paused a moment in consideration.

"Thank you." He said with a nod, tone clumsily gentle. Lu couldn't help but smirk. He wasn't always delicate, but The Mandalorian still surprised her by being polite and respectful to everyone he meets, so long as they didn't cop attitude or come for him. The beskard man turned and began to walk from the docking bay, passing the kid over to Lu with a nod. She smiled down at the little green face, following Mando. 

"Ohhh! I guess I  _ was  _ right. You got a job, didn't you?" Peli suddenly exclaimed, following the three of them. 

"Did you, Mando?" Lu asked. Mando looked to her and nodded silently. Body language saying he wasn't too happy about it. He was trying to keep from looking at her, it was plain to Lu. 

"Not sure how long it's gonna take." Mando said after a breath. "You grabbed supplies?" His pace slowed to a stop in front of large double doors in the outer wall that ran around the docking bay. The vast expanse of Tatooine beyond, gold and blue and  _ hot.  _

"Yeah. Haven't gone through it all yet but scored some decent stuff. No bacta, though, I'm afraid." She told him, suddenly feeling very unsure, she'd spent nearly every day in his presence since Nevarro. Lu tried to keep her tone from hinting at her apprehensions, adjusting the kid on her hip as she and Peli stood there with him. "Should take some with you in case you need." 

"Don't have time. The contact will be here-" 

"Hey, Mando!" an unknown male voice called over. Young, dark haired, tall but still shorter than Mando. He was younger than Lu, even, she was certain. Stride told Lu he was an upstart Hunter. His  _ song _ was cunning, devious, and ambitious. Lu instantly took a dislike to him. He was dangerous and she wasn't going to be able to back Mando up. She couldn't help her face, knowing her expression was cold. 

The Mandalorian nodded at him and they walked out the double doors. Two rough looking speeder bikes out front, ready to go. Lu was instantly trying to find a way to go with him, knowing full well she was in no shape to go bounty hunting…  _ But if this hunter has heard of what happened on Nevarro we might be in trouble.  _ A sudden sense of foreboding bubbled up over her anxiety. 

_ Serenity…  _ She called. She needed to keep control. Mando can handle himself and she had no place doubting. 

"What do you think? Not too shabby." Said the young hunter to Mando, gesturing at the sad looking speeders. Mando gave a weak shrug as if to say 'meh' very unimpressed. Peli outright scoffed, the kid watched the hunter silently with Lu. The two men stood next to their prospective bikes. 

"What'd you expect? This ain't Corellia." The hunter complained, looking over to Lu and Peli and the kid and nodded. "Ladies." He said to them in acknowledgement. The young hunter's eyes drifted over Lu's form, looking her once over and making her skin crawl. Lu kept her face cold and looked down her nose at him, letting her eyes show her disdain plainly. The kid laughed. 

_ This is not good. _ Lu grumbled to herself, fighting the need to jump the bike and go with them. 

The Mandalorian paused before jumping on his bike, looking to Lu. She could feel him looking, even without seeing his eyes. She knew he was having his own apprehensions about going, suddenly. His body language was stiff, conflicted. She made herself look away from the cocky Hunter, softening her face. She gave a small nod to Mando. Trying to tell him silently with her expression, a warning that this upstart Hunter was overly ambitious and would throw Mando under the metaphorical transport if it got him guild cred. 

_ Do not turn your back. Not even for a moment, Mandalorian. Do not turn your back.  _

Mando eventually regarded her with a small nod, stiff, and promptly hopped on the speeder. The engines ignited and the two of them took off, Mando's cape flapping behind him as they took off. The child made some coos and Lu bounced him on her hip a moment.

"Well. Better get back to work." Peli complained, turning and walking back inside. Lu and the kid stayed a few moments, watching where the two men had disappeared beyond a dune. 

The kid whined at her, sounding pensive. He looked up at her, his big brown eyes unsettled. Worried about the Mando. She smiled and calmed her own worries, for his sake. 

"Don’t be afraid, kiddo." Lu said, sounding confident and trying her best to let herself be. That strange, sneaking dread threatening to come forward in her mind regardless of how strong her hold on her  _ calm _ was. She told it to fuck off internally with a grumble, walking back to the sanctuary of the shade of Peli’s office in the docking bay with leaden feet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	15. The Sands of Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deep lore chapter! mashing Old Republic timeline+High Republic timeline (in a mention) up into now (Ill find somewhere to post a family tree cuz Im prolly gunna need to do a dossier on every one to keep track lolol)

Lu had spent the daytime helping Peli, minding the child, organizing supplies; cloak and bag and staff shoved up and out of the way. She wasn't proud about how she had snooped a little in the ship, looking for anything that might give her more insight into the Mandalorian, but she didn't go too deep. Not wanting to violate any of his space, this ship being effectively, his home. She was merely a guest.

After the twin sun's had set, and night was beginning to blanket Mos Eisley, Peli had gone to sleep in her bunkhouse just above her docking bay office. Lu went to the Razor Crest, had set the child to sleep in Mando's bunk, wrapping him in blankets against the cool night air. This left her feeling strangely lonely for the first time in weeks. The ship feeling empty and hollow without the Mandalorian.

The urge to try to contact Qui-Gon again struck her. On Sorgan she'd been so distracted, but now Mando wasn't nearby. She found it easier to focus, much to her own annoyance. 

_ I really, really gotta chill out. Can't just throw myself at the first decent guy I've come across in… Augh Gods. Ever.  _ Lu chided herself. Even if he was quiet, and polite and respectful; hell respectful almost to a fault. In fact when Lu thought about it, he seemed almost hyper aware of himself around her, sometimes. A part of her felt a kind of sadness for him, she got the sense he was at odds with himself. Problem was, she didn’t yet know if she wanted to do anything about it.

Lu grabbed her cloak, and went and sat outside on the sand, beyond the double doors. She was a ways away from them, started another small fire from what few things she could find to burn; wrapped in her cloak, the nights here got cold. Lu was meditating,  _ reaching  _ out into  _ The Song _ ,  _ reaching _ out to The Force. She was hoping to reach Qui-Gon Jinn's spirit. This time, finding it easier, less awkward. 

Slowly, Lu began to be less and less aware of her physical body, staring into the golden flickering flames. Eventually closing her eyes, and hummed a long solid, soft note. She let herself  _ fall _ into the deep cosmic orchestra of the universe, the  _ thrumm _ of  _ The Song _ meeting her. She felt separated from her physical form, her spirit light as she negotiated through her own feelings and taking hold of  _ Serenity, _ letting it carry her through The Force. 

In her mind, It was suddenly daytime on Tatooine. Enarra Jinn was running towards a ship Lu didn't recognize, sand flying up behind her heels, her long white braids flying out behind her as she ran. Lu wasn't sure who the long haired, brown robed man was until the black and red skinned Sith Lord engaged; as he spun and turned on his lightsaber in a green flash. Lu still used that hilt, the hilt that had belonged to Qui-Gon. Enarra got the blonde haired boy to the ship while her father fought against the Sith. Lu realized what she was seeing, the day Enarra fled Tatooine with Qui-Gon and the slave boy, Anakin Skywalker. The day she'd met Obi-Wan Kenobi. 

Her mother had told her the story numerous times as a child. Describing discovering that the slave boy she'd stumbled on was indeed very strong with The Force. She had gone to Tatooine, feeling that she was being  _ called _ there while in her exile from Kibahrr after Lu’s grandmother, Arruuna Khylu'une-Jinn died, causing civil war to then break out. Finding her father, whom she'd last seen as a little girl on his last secretive visit to Kibahrr, after Arruuna's death gave Enarra a strange pause in her sadness and grief. She had told Lu that it had not been coincidence that Qui-Gon found her. 

His fateful appearance, and his immediate call to Enarra to come to aid protecting the Queen of Naboo, to come to Coruscant with them. To go to the Jedi temple with them, help teach Anakin with him. Was of course immediately answered. Enarra had fallen in love the moment she'd looked in Obi-Wan's blue eyes to her own mismatched blue and green on the ship as it left Tatooine. Qui-Gon and Anakin between them, narrowly escaping the first Sith to arise in thousands of years. 

Everything shifted. The stars above Lu felt like they were spinning. She let herself be carried farther within  _ The Song _ . 

She was in an unknown place, a giant room with force field walled corridors and a bottomless shaft in the center. Obi-Wan's young form cradling Qui-Gon's lifeless body. Enarra's cry of sadness and anger ripped through Lu's senses and she came running over to the two men. This was the battle of Naboo, where Qui-Gon died, Lu realized. Her heart broke at her mother's anguish. She'd gone most of her life never knowing her father, his Jedi duties did not allow him to be the father she'd wanted. That Enarra believed _he'd_ _wanted_ to be. Their relationship after reuniting had started unsteady; Enarra was sad and angry over feeling abandoned by him, by not being there for Arruuna as she died. But Qui-Gon was warm and patient and understanding of her pain. Their relationship flourished in the short time they'd gotten to know each other as adults, only to be cut short by the red blade of a Sith Lord's lightsaber. Nightmare made real before her, Lu's tears fell unabated from her closed eyes in the Tatooine night. Enarra's sobs ringing in her bones. 

_ Why am I being shown this? I can't take her pain… _ The stars again shifted, visions manifesting new shapes and colours. Details becoming clear in her mind. 

In the fire before her, Lu felt Qui-Gon's  _ song _ . Suddenly she was there, on Naboo. She didn't know how it was Naboo, but it must be; Enarra had told her this tale, too. Qui-Gon's noble face was peaceful, surrounded by a wreath of flames as they freed his spirit with his funeral pyre. Even in death his presence could not be ignored. Enarra stood there, cloaked, her mismatched eyes full of grief and pain. Obi-Wan stood next to her, Anakin between them. Lu couldn't look away from the pain in her mother's young face, it was all she could see. 

_ Sadness _ . Pure, unbridled sadness. If Lu was born under the guidance of the Priestess of Joy, then Enarra's life was certainly guided by the Priestess of Sadness. At every turn, Enarra had chosen to break her own heart. Chosen duty over love, chose people who hated her over people who loved her,  _ because  _ of that duty.

Enarra chose Kibahrr over  _ herself _ at every instance and it only now did Lu see how much it had fundamentally  _ destroyed _ her. Lu now realised how much of it her mother must have kept to herself, all that time. Yes, she told Lu all the stories, recounted the pain more than once, but framed more like fairy tales, grand adventures suited for a child's imagination. Over and over, asking Lu what she took away from the tales, what she thought they'd meant? All to  _ teach _ her, so as to not repeat her mistakes.

To  _ choose differently _ , not out of self service, but self  _ preservation.  _

Suddenly, from everywhere and nowhere all at once Lu  _ heard  _ and  _ felt  _ a bone-quaking cracking noise. Like a deep fracturing, grinding snap. The sound of kyber breaking, cleaving and collapsing on itself. Giant, radiant spires of kyber crystals erupted from the earth around her. The prime star of Kibahrr's homeworld above. Lu heard her mother's voice scream in a way that she'd never heard. In a way that made her shake with  _ fear.  _ Drums of  _ War _ beat in time with the cleaving of the spires of radiant, iridescent spires of crystal shooting to the sky from the earth. 

Before her, in Lu's vision, Enarra was  _ Angry.  _ Beaten and battered and bloody, clothing dirty and torn from war _.  _ She called on the Priestess of  _ Anger _ and called on the God's themselves, the earth erupting around her. She was calling on  _ The Song _ , wielding The Force. 

Stopping a lightsaber wielded by  _ General Grievous  _ in the middle of a wicked arc downward. Lu knew who that monster was by the sight, Enarra had described him only once, but it had terrified Lu so badly as a child that she'd had a nightmare that night. Now, she was  _ living _ the tale before her very eyes. Enarra's braids glowed bright white, like the heart of a star itself, her blue and green eyes blazing. Separatist Battle droids, Kihbarri warriors all aligned to House Khylu’une and Republic Clone Troopers all around them, sent equally flying by the expulsion of her powers. 

Grievous would have ended Obi-Wan right there in front of her, on the Kibahrri soil, in the midst of war. But Enarra chose him. Unable to let him die and unleashed everything she had within herself. Stopping and then sending Grievous flying, broken against a wall of summoned kyber. Unable to bear the thought of Satine Kryze's heart break from the death of the man she loved. Satine may not have shared the same love for Enarra as she had for Satine, but that did not stop her from being loyal to the Mandalorian Duchess for her friendship. For her aid and sisterhood. Enarra's love for her was so strong that she would rather see Satine continue to love Obi-Wan unimpeded, and have Obi-Wan love her freely in return without worrying about Enarra's heartbreak. Enarra loved them  _ both  _ too much to come between them, truly, fully, and without attachment. 

Enarra used her love to bolster her  _ Anger  _ through which she channeled The Force; coming dangerously close to letting the anger overtake her, and falling to the Dark side. In the end, Grievous narrowly escaped and the Separatists abandoned attempting to take the planet. Unfortunately, he survived and continued to terrorize the Galaxy.

_ Lumen's Falls Echo…  _ it was the one moment Enarra chose Obi-Wan's life over her own people. And paid dearly for it. It mirrored the choice that a Kibahrri Empress had made, nearly five thousand years prior. Enarra had long been suspicious that the stories were indeed history, that held far more importance than most her peers believed. Lu wondered if her thinking of this now, being shown this now was an indication that Enarra had been onto something. 

Five thousand some odd years ago, Iridezria Khyvar Lu'une chose her Jedi lover over the Mandalorian that loved her. And the war that broke out because of it changed the entire  _ Galaxy;  _ rifts opening in the Old Republic, the Jedi and the Mandalorians at the rise of Mandalore the Ultimate, seeking revenge for Iridezria choosing the Jedi over Mandalore _.  _ The Kibahrri Empress had been considered as powerful with  _ The Song _ as Revan, Kreia and other various legendary warriors were with The Force. Whose powers and voice made the Manda'lor unable to resist her, but also unable to reconcile that he shared Iridezria's love with another. With a  _ Jedi _ . 

_ Lumens Fall  _ was the event that tidally locked their home world and cast half of it into eternal darkness. Poisoning half the Kyber of the world at the same time. Kibahrri recorded this in song, Lu's favourite…  _ Iridezrias Ballad.  _ A tale of love and loss. Iridezria falling to the Dark side as war broke out and darkness poisoned the galaxy. In a moment before her death, she had turned back to the Light. The planet forever reflecting the choice she had made. Balanced between the Light and the Dark. Both sides eternally locked, the entire planet a monument to her duality. Her struggle to find balance within herself, unable to reconcile that the two people she loved would rather ravage the Galaxy than live in peace with her. 

Iridezria's House eventually became the House Enarra and Lu belonged to. Evolving names from Khyvar Lu'une to Khylu'une; other lines taking other fragments of the original names themselves, all evolving and changing as well. But Lu's line was the only one with this much baggage, this much history and almost direct line back to those terrible, terrible events. The other Houses suddenly also became  _ obsessed _ with bloodlines and 'purity' and 'true Kibahrri' untainted by foreign blood. Only to have it bite them in the ass as continual wars, and a couple plagues dwindled their numbers to the point of never bouncing back. 

After  _ Lumen's Fall _ , Kibahrr people pulled back from the Galaxy in retreat. The Jedi winning the wars at the end of it; Mandalore itself left barren and scarred forcing the people into domed cities to defend against a planet no longer able to naturally support life; the entire system sustaining heavy damage. Other peoples like the Nightsisters of Dathomir slowly and quietly rising in place of the falling Kibahrri presence in the Galaxy. The Jedi and the High Republic also rose until their fall at the end of The Clone War. The Empire snuffing out their lights across the entire Galaxy… 

In the present, the rest of the Galaxy has forgotten what started it all the chaos that had lasted years; but five thousand years in between now and then would be the cause of that. Entire planets fell, races nearly became extinct.

Then a thousand years ago, with Mandalore the Great, Jedi and true leader of the Mandalorians. Thought to have been gifted his force wielding abilities from Iridezria's blood four thousand years prior. Wielder of the Darksaber, whose kyber crystal was created from the blood of a Kibahrri woman who sacrificed herself to protect him, turning away from duty and choosing love. To give him the Kyber in her blood to forge the crystal for Darksaber itself. A sacrifice of pure love for him. Enarra had been suspicious she'd been the  _ last  _ Kibahrri Empress; the other major Houses breaking the seat of power between the five of them, leaving the Khylu'une line as the High Priestess, spiritual leadership was more apt for her lines abilities and powers as opposed to attempting to strike them from history all together. 

Kibahrr collectively had struck her name and title and any children she'd may have born the Manda'lor from history in a rare omission, the 'shame' she brought too great to bear. A traitor; too close to Iridezria and the shame she had brought with  _ Lumens Fall _ . Kibahrri considered the sword cursed, a symbol of their collective pain and loss. A reminder of the beginning of the end of their people. Enarra believed she had also been from Iridezria's direct lineage. But since everything had seemingly vanished about the unknown Kibahrri woman, she never learned the truth of it.

But everyone likely seemed to have the same idea. Naming the actions and events that ended the conflict on Kibahrr to free the people from Separatist control; to keep  _ out _ of Jedi and Republic control that Enarra took, unleashing just as Iridezria had,  _ Lumen's Falls Echo.  _ Forever cementing the connection between Enarra, the unnamed Kibahrr lover of Manda'lor the Great, to Iridezria.

It took nearly a thousand years after Mandalore the Great and the forging of the Darksaber, before Arruuna Khylu’une, Lu’s grandmother, began to reconnect with Mandalore. Before she married Qui-Gon Jinn in secret and took his name. Enarra and Satine had met upon Enarra's return to Kibahrr after the blockade on Naboo ended, ten years before the Clone War. After Qui-Gon's death she didn't feel right staying on Coruscant and near the Jedi Temple. Deciding to continue the work laid by Arruuna as The High Priestess; save Kibahrr from extinction by reconnecting to their ancient allies. Mandalore and Jedi both. Enarra had succeeded, allied to both Mandalore and the Jedi, even if it had only been for about a galactic second of its entire history. But in the end, it hadn't been enough and the Empire too prepared in its moves. 

Lu shivered in the present. Her small fire dying but still held in her trance. Meditating on the events that seemingly so long ago echoed and reverberate and continued to manifest in new ways again and again. 

_ "This is why you must let go, Little Luna."  _ The regal, warm rumbling voice of her Grandfather came through  _ The Song _ . 

_ Qui-Gon Jinn…  _ Joy flooded her heart, through treading her mother's painful past and catching the reflections of legendary events she'd come to realize that her feeling that there  _ was something larger at play _ was correct. 

_ "The Living Force guides you, Luna. Trust it. The child needs you."  _ His voice was so earnest, so warm. Tears fell from her eyes, green lights dazzling in the fire before her in her trance. 

_ Me? I'm no Jedi. I can't teach him what he needs to know. I can't protect him like the Mandalorian.  _ She admitted, staring in a trance to the dying fire. 

_ "He needs to be taught to control his feelings, to love without fear and attachment. There is no better soul suited for that task, than you."  _ Qui-Gon's voice was so reassuring she could almost feel her doubt melt away. She sighed heavily, heart feeling sore. " _ The Mandalorian will need you to teach him that as well." _

_ Mando? I honestly don't know what I could teach a Mandalorian.  _ Lu's heart picked up, hoping he was okay off in the night, chasing whatever bounty with that damn young Hunter. 

_ "He will need to be  _ more  _ than just a Mandalorian. He and the child both need a guiding light."  _ Qui-Gon's voice was beginning to fade, Lu was losing focus. 

_ I don't understand. Please, grandfather… Don't go.  _ Lu felt so alone in the darkness of the Tatooine desert. 

" _ Trust your feelings, Little Luna. You were shown what you were shown for a reason. Do not be afraid… You are  _ never _ alone." _

The Jedi Master faded from her awareness. And Lu sniffled, letting tears fall. Wishing desperately that Mando hadn't gone off alone. Didn't matter that the rational part of her brain told her he'd survived without her and needed no help when her heart was in her throat at even the suspicion something could go wrong out there. Krayt dragons, opportunistic Jawas, volatile Tusken Raiders and Light only knew what else on top of a dangerous bounty and an ambitious Hunter. 

Lu trudged back to the Razor Crest, the kid still snoozing away in the darkness. Feeling too many things to properly sort out, she simply plunked down on her ass in the darkness of the hold, sitting against the inner wall of the hull, and tried to sleep. Hoping everything would go fine. 

_ Please. Gods be good. Keep him safe.  _ She prayed before trying to let her aching body sleep. It unfortunately didn't go well. She'd been too unsettled by the emptiness of the ship, after her visions of her mother's painful past. No gentle ringing of beskar in her senses, no sounds of Mando's sleepy breathing, occasional metallic snores to remind her she wasn't alone. Her sleep was not deep, fitful, dreams of bright flashes of white and red and the roars of speeder bikes. 

Lu had awoken early, stiff and aching. She took a neuroblocker just to help herself out, shoved her cloak up with her bag and staff; too hot to wear. Looking at herself in the privys small mirror in the Crest, she felt unsettled. Dark circles under her eyes, tension in her face. Something was amiss, but she assumed it was just lack of sleep and the nagging worry she'd been suppressing all this time. 

_ Chill. Out. He's gone for a night and you're already being like this? Good Gods, get yourself together, girl.  _ Lecturing herself internally. Lu was truly, honestly getting tired of her own shit. Letting the Mandalorian become such a welcome part of her days. Too friendly. Too familiar.

She'd spent all day with that foreboding feeling. Even assisting Peli and keeping the kid busy couldn't fully distract from it. Come late in the afternoon evening only an hour or so away, the mystery was unfortunately solved. Just as Lu was beginning to feel like maybe it was taking Mando too long to return, the sound of  _ one  _ speeder roared; and shortly thereafter the upstart Hunter returned, alone.

He'd double crossed Mando.  _ That _ was why she'd been unsettled, she was right from the second she'd laid eyes on him. Proof in a blaster tuned on herself, Peli and the kid. 

_ Should've trusted my damn feelings instead of assuming I'm being ridiculous. Why am I like this?  _ This was going to be another painful lesson. How many times was Qui-Gon's ghost going to have to repeat himself? How many times had Enarra told her? Too many. 

"You're going to regret this, Hunter." Lu's voice was ice as he walked them into the Crest to await Mando's return, blaster at her back. The three of them inside, with this cocky bastard standing at the top of the back ramp that Peli had opened earlier for repairs, blocking their escape by keeping his blaster pointed at them, the risk to the side exit too great. Peli cradled the kid in her arms standing with her back against the closed wall of Mando's bunk. Lu beside but slightly ahead of her, ready to cover them. 

"You should have told that to Mando before he fucked up Nevarro. And the names Toro Callahan. You're going to remember it." His tone dripped with arrogance and he had the audacity to leer at her. Her skin crawled as his gaze creeped over her body, disgusting overly confident grin across his smarmy face. She wished she'd been wearing her cloak. Her clothing wasn't skin tight but her plainclothes of black long sleeves and high waisted, belted pants showed her figure plainly. And she was without her vibro daggers, she'd stupidly left them in her bag. "I'll make sure you do, one way  _ or another _ ." 

His implication laid bare. Peli scoffed and glared at him, making like she was going to argue. Lu kept her face neutral, not wanting to let this Toro know he guessed right about Nevarro. She was worried, but gestured to Peli to stay calm. The Tatooine woman simmered, her face clearly unhappy and wanting to pick a fight, kid in her arms making the occasional worried noise. 

And threats of violence against her person from his  _ particular breed _ of pathetic excuse of a man weren't new, to Lu. She didn't even bother wasting energy being mad about it like Peli, in fact she was bored by it more than anything. Painfully predictable. What she needed to do now, was figure out what this Light forsaken asshole did and wait for Mando to return. It was clear this was meant as a trap, he was  _ painfully _ transparent. 

Lu's staff was up with her bag in some roped netting held against the hull. She had thrown them up there to keep them off the floor and away from the child. She didn't know if she could make it to the staff to attack this asshole before he got a shot on her, or worse, Peli and the child. She didn't doubt he was at least a decent shot. Ruefully, Lu found herself regretting not taking Mando up on blaster lessons; they'd spent weeks on Sorgan and she'd just basked in the peace when she should have been continuing to train. Lu, now, instead opted to continue to wait, to bide her time. The twin sun's were falling fast outside. 

"The old man should be back soon. Hope he doesn't keep us waiting but I left him with no speeder and nothing but a Dewback." Toro drolled on, being boring. Lu was thoroughly annoyed with this manchild but trying to gain the upper hand here could be dicey. 

"You actually think this gives you the advantage?" Lu smirked knowingly at him, eyes gleaming silent threats. "Takes so much  _ nerve  _ to think one could take a fuckin' Mandalorian on with such meagre arms. It's frankly, suicidal. You're in over your head, kid." She shrugged, deliberately being smug. If he got angry, he'd definitely do something stupid and potentially give her an opening to more safely get to her staff. 

"I  _ aint no kid _ . I think it gives me all the edge I need." Toro spat. She'd clearly skimmed a nerve. "He's a guild traitor and I'm going to take the kid and his corpse back to Nevarro. Gonna take  _ you _ back too." Toro's eyes gleamed in a way that made her want to strip her skin, but it was clear he was trying to not get more annoyed. Lu laughed. A barking, insulting, snarky cackle. 

" _ Boy _ . You wouldn't know what to  _ do  _ with me." She shook her head ruefully, daring him. 

"But the Mandalorian does?" He bit. 

"Wouldn't you just  _ love  _ to know?" She said, being deliberately snide. Let this foolish boy's imagination run wild if it was going to make him angrier. 

Unfortunately, she maybe have underestimated this Toro. Instead of continuing, he shut his mouth. Glaring angrily, but otherwise didn't move and kept the blaster on them. Peli groaned, the kid whined. Not giving Lu the satisfaction of a stupid move to create an opening.

Eventually darkness fell. The temperature in the air dropping, Lu wishing for her cloak. If she got too cold she'd shiver and that might give this asshole the wrong idea. 

_ Mando where in the fuck are you?  _ She mentally complained. And as if on cue, Peli's pit droids nervously chattered outside the ship. Lu  _ listened _ and heard the reassuring ring of beskar at the edges of her senses. She couldn't help an evil, wicked grin come across her face. It was nearly pitch black inside, ambient lighting from the docking bay spilling in; though she didnt care if Toro saw her expression. Mando's footsteps approaching. Instinctively, she  _ reached  _ out with her feelings for him, pushing beyond the beskar’s ringing as best she could; he was tired, sore, and  _ angry.  _ Not an explosive rage kind of angry, but a seething undercurrent. He’d had time on that Dewback ride back to stew on the betrayal.

Toro suddenly moved towards them, silently. Lu's body ached from standing for so long, but she stepped in front of Peli, still holding the kid. 

"Get moving.  _ You _ give her the kid and go first." He said to Peli, low, menacingly. Motioned with the blaster towards the open back hatch. Peli made an annoyed exasperated sigh, but looked at Lu with a wilted expression as she handed the kid over. The poor guy was unsettled, his big brown eyes unsure as he looked up at her, holding him close. Lu kept her face neutral and bored as she stepped behind Peli, Toro stepping up behind Lu. He pressed himself against her back rubbing, immediately wanting to tell him how lucky he was that she was without her daggers. “ _ Move.”  _ He barked. _   
_ _   
_ Begrudgingly, she followed Peli’s steps down into the low lighting past the threshold of the ship. She stopped when Toro reached beyond her and put the blaster near the curly haired woman’s cheek. Mando stood in front of the windows of Peli’s office. Lu felt his eyes meet hers and knew immediately this scene was making him  _ angrier. _ She could sense it. There were a lot of things to read, even with his lack of a biological face. 

Herself, Lu was immediately relieved to see him alright with her own eyes. A million and one things could've happened to him and all day today she couldn't stop thinking he had no med supplies. Out in the middle of nowhere, with some one he couldn't trust. And then Toro showed up and tried to set this trap; had it not been so obvious her worries may have otherwise become overwhelming with the unknown. She did notice though that dead center on his chest plate, there was carbon scoring. The damn man had taken a plasma bolt  _ to his chest _ . Lu clamped down a sudden wash of worry for him.   
  
“Took you long enough, Mando. Looks like  _ I’m _ calling the shots now. Huh, Partner?” Toro called out to him as they appeared on the ramp out of the darkness of the hold, tone cocky. He kept  _ pressing _ himself against her and she wanted to strangle him; but Lu knew he was about to get his just deserts anyway. He grabbed a pair of binders off his belt and gave them to Peli, poking her with the blaster to get her moving, then putting the blaster back to Lu. Commanding Mando “Drop your blaster and raise ‘em.”   
  
Mando stayed silent, never one to waste his words. He tossed his blaster down just ahead of himself, and smoothly put his gloved hands behind his helmet, beskar vambraces gleaming as they reflected the light when he moved. Mando was being casual deliberately, he let his body language say he was bored with the whole charade. Toro called him  _ old man _ , meant as an insult, but with age comes experience and she knew the Mandalorian likely had already put plenty of ambitious men in early graves. ' _ Old man'  _ Hunter's are old for a reason, they killed everyone that tried to kill them. But this Toro seemed to think that their age difference meant he had the advantage. Like a cub provoking a Lothwolf, not fully aware of the danger he's putting himself in. Lu smirked, gave the beskard man a knowing look, and chose to keep quiet. She  _ had _ tried to warn Toro, telling him going through with his plan would be suicide.    
  
“Cuff him.” Toro barked at Peli when she didn't move right away.   
  
“Augh” She groaned at him, but Peli tentatively began to walk down with the binders in her hands anyway.   
  
“You’re a Guild traitor, Mando. And I'm willing to bet this here is the target that you helped escape. Which makes this fine  _ piece of ass _ the singer that disappeared the same day from Nevarro. No fob for her, but, she's worth a nice bonus when brought in with you.” He deliberately bumped into her back again, grinding his hips into her ass, his hand gripped her shoulder forcefully, fingers digging in. Lu rolled her eyes and kept her feet planted, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing how skeeved this made her. The kid whined up at her, she made herself ignore him for a moment, there wasn't much she could do in her current position. “Course I might be  _ nice  _ and show her what a younger man can  _ do _ for her. Might even change her mind.”   
  
_ Augh, gross. Not on your life, this short one or the next. Not even in your wildest dreams. _ Lu swallowed the words and sneered. Bile rose in her throat and her temper was rising with every word and move this hunter made; every touch. Mando's temper also flared, she  _ sensed _ it though outwardly nothing changed. But she was too preoccupied with wanting to flay her own skin off from the unconsented touching to focus on how he was feeling. Lu simply kept her eyes on Mando, concentrating, keeping a hold of her  _ Serenity _ . She could have sworn Peli whispered something to Mando as she approached him. Lu noticed that Peli was seemingly stalling, moving slow, Mando kept his hands behind his head. His body language was no longer bored, but now waiting. He was waiting for Toro to give him an opening.    
  
“Fennec was right. Bringing you in won’t just make me a  _ member _ of the Guild.” His hand that had been gripping her shoulder, aggressively grabbed a fistful of her blue-grey headscarf; balling his fist at her throat, attempting to provoke Mando. She remained as still as possible, refusing to move or flinch; but a seething anger at being treated like a fucking piece of meat was starting to wear on her patience. Toro’s voice was brimming with arrogance. He truly had no idea what force of reckoning he was bringing upon himself. Mando fixed Lu dead center in the black T of his beskar helmet, he could feel him looking at her; could  _ feel _ his anger at this circus. She  _ listened _ to sense his intentions,  _ reaching  _ out with her feelings. He had a surprise, just like with the hunter that tried to take them down the day before yesterday as they had dropped out of Hyperspace. Toro was too busy being a cocky idiot to notice that Mando had something hidden in his hands. Too preoccupied with running his mouth. A fatal mistake.    
  
_ You should have listened to me, Toro Callahan. You are woefully unprepared. _   
  
“It’ll make me  _ legendary. _ ” Toro snarked, oozing arrogance, suddenly raising his blaster to Mando. And Lu  _ felt  _ it, Mando made his move, Peli suddenly springing away from him. Lu instinctively snapped her eyes shut and moved to block the kids eyes in time, pulling him in close to her chest.   
  
A white flash burst out in front her, so bright, Lu's vision was red behind her eyelids for a moment. She heard a metallic groan, ozone flooded her nose and blaster fire her ears. Toro was shooting blind ahead, where Mando  _ had _ been. Lu could sense him moving,  _ hear  _ the ringing of the beskar moving, quickly, quietly.  _ Serenity! _ She called, and fortified herself, eyes staying closed, staying perfectly still. The kid squealed, scared in her arms but she kept calm. A blaster fired from the side, where she sensed Mando. He had used the light to blind Toro and move off to the side, his blaster bolt taking the young hunter in the neck,  _ right _ behind her head.   
  
Immediately struck with a wash of ozone so thick it felt as if it could suffocate her, Toro’s dying grunt in her ear as he went falling sideways, taking her and the kid with him to the ground. The last sound he made ringing in her bones. She hit the sand with a hard thud, her eyes still shut, she had dropped the baby but she was reeling before she could react to make sure she didn't. Shooting pain went through her chest like a dozen knives, she gasped for air and sucked in dust and grit of sand with it, causing some coughs. She knew that Toro was behind her and likely dead but in survival mode she kicked and rolled away to make sure she wasn't within arms reach.   
  
“Stay back!” Mando barked as Lu could hear his running steps come closer, Peli was coming out from her hiding place too.  _ Song _ panicked.    
  
“Gotta get it!” She said, ignoring him sounding frantic, looking around. Lu was picking herself up to sitting, trying to gauge what was going on, if there was any danger. Her world was spinning, choking on the ozone smell and the realization that if Mando had been a hair off it might have been  _ her _ corpse. She knew it wasn’t just luck that made sure it wasn’t. Mando didn’t rely on  _ luck _ . But it was still incredibly unsettling. She hurt all over again, really regretting not training and strengthening herself on Sorgan. Trying to move through the tangle of panic being heaped on her unknowingly by Peli, and seemingly Mando too. He'd been so  _ angry _ , too. His relief was  _ audible _ to Lu as he came over seeing that she was intact and no worse for wear.    
  
Mando kicked the blaster away from the corpse of Toro Callahan, just in case.  _ Never _ relied on luck. The young Hunter's ambitious  _ song _ silent, his life left his body and his spirit waiting to return to the cosmic orchestra of  _ The Song.  _ Lu was managing to begin to get herself righted, sitting on the sand as Mando came over to her, Peli suddenly exclaiming happily, picking up the kid from where he'd bolted behind a power bank after hitting the ground. Lu felt momentarily terrible for dropping him. 

" _ There _ you are! Are you hiding from us, huh?" She bounced him gently, looking down at his face. "Look at you" she said, comforting the little guy. He made some tentative coos. Lu felt instant relief. The woman had been  _ petrified  _ for the child, and so had Lu; everything happened so fast she just hadn't had time to realize it until now. 

Mando lowered a hand for Lu to take to assist her up. Just like he had when she'd awoken on the floor of the Razor Crest so many weeks ago, it felt like an eternity and yet just a moment at the same time. This time though, she took it. He helped get her righted and steady on her feet. His big gloved hands on her arms, her hands gripping the sleeves of his biceps, canvas under her leather gloved fingers. They stood there, like that, in a kind of strange not-quite-half-embrace. Mando looking down at her. 

"You good?" He asked. Tone business, but there was an air of concern in the back of his smoky, metallic notes. Lu suddenly was aware that he wasn't moving, keeping his hands gently cradling her elbows; palms so big they cupped a part of her forearm. It almost seemed as if it was half to help steady her, half to make sure she was really okay. He'd been worried, Lu could almost  _ hear _ it beyond the veil of his armour, now relieved and perhaps even  _ happy _ to see her? Again, here he goes, being strangely  _ sweet _ . Perhaps not even aware of it himself. 

"I'm good. Took you long enough." She said, voice gruff but trying to be teasing. She ached and was still trying to get ozone out of her nose and mind fully righted. Though now she was finding herself flooded with too many emotions to sort out, looking up at the deep inky void of his T visor, night sky the background to his gleaming beskar helmet her entire view. They were barely inches apart. Though this being the most they'd 'touched' each other, and after missing him for a night, Lu had to admit she didn't want to move at that moment. Beskar reflecting the amber light of the docking bay, and the dark blue-black of the deepening night. Stars twinkling above. Lu for a moment, was only vaguely aware that Peli and the kid were there.

Strangely, the scene of her mother's eyes and Obi-Wans meeting for the first time, on this planet, all those years ago came to Lu's mind; a sudden echo rippling from the past. Perhaps that's why  _ The Song,  _ The Force, showed her those things. Perhaps that's why, by some strange happenstance, Mando had chosen Tatooine of all places to go in the Outer Rim. 

Like songs, sometimes the same melody will be used, but the actual words changed. The same melody could apply to many, many different tales. Lu couldn't help her suspicion that perhaps that's what this was… she didn't have time to think about it now. And going down that path would require introspection on Lu's part about how she felt about the Mando; she wasn't feeling that brave. 

"Shhh. That's alright. I know." Peli spoke to the kid as he babbled at her. "that was really loud for your big old ears, wasn't it?" she asked him, he responded with more curious babbling noises, ears perked. Mando looked over to Peli, breaking whatever spell Lu had just been entranced by while staring up at the tall armoured man. Peli looked over at the two of them and gave Lu a smartass smirk, though still talking to the kid, though she turned and walked closer to the side ramp, away from Toro's corpse. "It's okay. Shhh." 

_ Damnit.  _ Lu made herself not blush from the realization that there had been a strange exchange between the two of them and Peli had noticed. Lu let go of Mando, feeling okay enough to stay on her feet… And if they'd stayed like that any longer her knees might go weak, although for entirely  _ different _ reasons. 

_ Why am I like this?  _ She complained to herself internally.  _ Light, save me from myself.  _

Mando dropped his hands, and casually stepped over towards Peli where she stood in between the side ramp and the back ramp, Lu tentatively followed him, her body aching. The kid babbling away, Peli handed him to Mando. The strange, short, older woman looked sad. For all her shark and sarcastic attitude she was as good a person as one could expect on a dry, dusty, harsh place like this. 

"Be careful with him." Peli told the armoured man, her voice just this once not sounding snarky; She heaved a sigh and went back to normal real quick though, which only made Lu grin. "So, I take it you didn't get paid." half-annoyed, but sounding empty, like she maybe didn't care either way but was still kind of hoping. Mando pulled out a small satchel, it clinked with credits inside. He nodded at Peli. Taking the hint, she turned her palms up at him eagerly. 

Lu could've laughed, she shook her head and put her hands on her hips, standing next to Mando, watching the exchange. That's just the way of the Galaxy, everything has a cost. And then Mando went and did that damn thing again, surprising her. He casually upended the  _ entire _ satchel into Peli's palms, the tiny bars of metals spilling out, some falling onto the ground. She stared in disbelief.  _ Lu _ stared in disbelief. 

"That cover me?" Mando looked down and asked the older woman. Lu almost couldn't believe her ears at his tone. Business, but she didn't miss that he knew it was  _ way _ more than more than the bay fee and the repairs. He almost sounded amused, he knew Peli was going to lose it. The shrewd woman changed her face to a  _ very _ transparent trying-to-look doubtful as she pursed her lips. 

"Yeah." She said, forcing her tone to sound skeptical though there was no doubt it was enough. "Yes, this is gonna cover you." She shook her head quickly as if she waited to be concise he may change his mind. Lu knew he wouldn't change his mind. 

Lu's heart could have burst. There this Gods damn man went, surprising her  _ again _ . And this time he wasn't even doing it to be a smartass to Lu, like he had on Sorgan when she assumed he was going to shortchange the village and ended up giving the entire payment to Cara instead. Did he even realize what the gesture meant? Obviously he must have because why else do it? Credits are hard to come by and now Peli could maybe worry less about the daily expenditures until the next travellers came by a planet that had no reason to travel to. Lu quickly smoothed her face, swallowing any words. She didn't know if she made any sound if it would out herself. 

Mando turned and looked down at Lu as she stood at his shoulder, gesturing for her to get going up into the ship. A nod of his chin to the side ramp. She nodded at him, then looked to Peli with a smile. 

"It's good to know you, Peli." Lu said to her before stepping on the ramp. The Tatooine woman made a sound, sounding more gruff than she'd expected; Lu gave the older woman a knowing look. "Miss you too." She said deliberately, knowingly. The woman was too proud to admit she was going to miss them.

Mando nodded a silent goodbye at Peli and followed behind Lu up the ramp. Peli called to her Pit droids, her orders disappearing behind the hiss and electric grind of hydraulics as Mando shut the doors. Made for the cockpit, but stopped, before the ladder, Lu stopped beside him, suddenly confused.

"Up ya get." He said flatly, deadpan. She quirked an eyebrow at him; he was in a good mood, despite his tone, and Lu couldn't quite place why. Probably just happy no one got hurt and he's back in his ship; she didn't feel up for looking farther than that for his reasoning. The kid made a happy sound at her and she couldn't help but look down and smile at those big brown orbs in that little green face. 

"Yeah, yeah I'm going." Lu said sarcastically at them both. Made her way up the ladder, Mando and the kid watching her ascend. She made her way up and sat in her seat.

_ My seat? Oh Gods no don't start thinking that way now.  _ She groaned at herself, suddenly annoyed at the same old bullshit. Mando came up the ladder and dropped the kid in her lap as he took his seat. 

His body language was somehow smug? Like he was  _ real _ damn pleased with himself. Being happy everything went okay was one thing, but this was new. Like Mando was in on a joke that only he knew, on top of his good mood. 

_ … Okay, what the fuck?  _ Lu was getting real confused real fast. Mando just went about his business, running systems, engaging take off. Lu felt the shift as he pushed the engines to pull away from Tatooine. Leaving the golden sands of Mos Eisley below and behind them. Lu breathed and settled in for however long they were going to be in space; she did herself a favour and assumed a while. 

Black space dotted with stars spread out beyond the transparisteel as they broke through the night drenched atmosphere. Lu distracted, thinking about Mando telling her to go up to the ship first, and then the cockpit first. Seeming so  _ happy _ . The beskar'd man seemed more at ease than perhaps Lu had seen him before. He usually just walked and let her follow along. The slight change of behaviour for some reason hanging in the back of her mind as she sat. 

  
_ Wait. Did he just want to  _ look  _ at me?  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	16. The Lessons in Arms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deviating from show events - We take a detour and have a nice stop on Lothal~

"You're fighting it. Stop trying so hard." Mando's voice from behind her was tired and getting frustrated. He sat on a crop of rocks, the kid next to him happily watching her. 

"This. This, Mandalorian, is why I don't do blasters." Lu griped at him in the afternoon sun. Mando had marked a target ahead on another rock, fifteen yards, not far.  _ To start _ he'd said. 

"Shoot." He grumbled, low and final. 

They had left Tatooine yesterday, and after the fiasco with Toro, Mando has taken it upon himself to drive Lu bonkers trying to teach her to shoot. So, they've come to Lothal. The planet covered in beautiful plains, strange rock formations and a beautiful sky. Lu hadn't bothered asking Mando where they were going until they'd already been in hyperspace a while. And Gods be good she wasn't sure if she wanted to be on a planet where an ancient Jedi temple used to be located; but it was far too late to argue about it. Lu couldn't help noticing she ends up in places of importance in galactic history. Lothal was where the beginning of the end of the Empire began. Enarra had never come here, but it was another thread back to the Rebellion she helped raise. 

Mando had landed the Razor Crest in the Northern hemisphere as Lothals sun was warming into a bright morning; next to an outcropping of Lothals strange rock formations. They'd eaten, Mando inside the Crest in private, then set up camp outside the ramps of the ship. Protected on the rear by a semi-circle-ish formation of tall mesa spires.

Both Lu and the kid felt it here, this place.  _ Strong  _ with the Force. And if she were to be honest that was likely why she was having a hard time concentrating. Well,  _ one _ reason. The other Lu was continually forcing herself to reject and ignore. Mando's close proximity as always, a presence she was having difficulty not being distracted by. Sorgan was already bad, but that moment on Tatooine after he'd shown up and got them out of the Toro situation, where she'd looked up at his visor in the darkness of the Tatooine night and could have  _ sworn _ there had been something to it; that's just made it worse.

Lu sighed heavily, looking to the old blaster in her hand. Focussing on it instead of the brooding Mandalorian. It felt unwieldy; random when she fired it the first few times. Blaster bolts flying wide from the stone target. Mando said it was an EC-17, small and compact, it's trigger on the side meant for gloves. 

"Are you just gonna stand there?" Mando inquired, crossing his arms. His helmet cocked to the side. Metallic rumble of his voice dry and annoyed. The kid also made a bored sound and looked at her, heavy lidded and seeming ready for an afternoon nap. The Lothal sun hot and high above them. 

"You shush." She griped back at him, her own frustration amped, turning back to the target Mando had scratched into the face of a small rock of that strange mesa-like formation of various sizes. Some even towering in huge natural monuments, grey sandstone-esque spires reaching into the light blue of the Lothal sky. Plains of yellow-green grasses stretched out as far as the eye could see around their camp. Razor Crest and Mando both reflecting the gentle hues of the daylight. 

Lu took a breath, raised her right arm, raising the blaster. Hesitated, trying to feel it out, to  _ focus  _ on the target. She pressed the trigger on the side of the small black gun. The plasma bolt ripped from the muzzle and ozone wafted on the slight breeze. 

A heavy, exasperated sounding sigh came from the Mandalorian behind her as her bolt skimmed the right side of the rock. But still missing his scratchy target completely. 

"Well at least you hit the rock that time." The Mandalorian stated, obviously trying to find something positive to say. 

"Seriously how the hell do you do it? It's so…  _ Unwieldy _ . I don't know where the bolt is going regardless of how I aim." Lu was literally at a loss, frustration turning to just plain anger. She could swing a sword blindfolded, but this? Why is she like this? 

"You swing a  _ vibrosword _ but the blaster is the unwieldy weapon?" He was so unimpressed, snark dripped from his rough metallic words. "That is one of the smallest arms I have. If you can't shoot that?" He shrugged, arms still crossed as he left the question unanswered. Implicating she may be a lost cause in terms of ranged arms, and Lu pretty much kinda had that already figured out. Mando was being needlessly stubborn about this though, despite her attempts to tell him this was going to happen. They'd been at this for over an hour and skimming the rock was as far as she'd come. 

"Well what do you want from me, Mandalorian? My people don't revere weaponry, we're peaceful." Lu told him with a very pointed edge to her tone. She put her empty left hand on her black canvas clad hip as she looked back at him, frustration plain on her face. She narrowed her eyes at the T of his helmets visor looking back at her. 

"Peaceful? But had a sword in your hand since you could walk?" Mando nearly sounded incredulous. His metallic rumble sounded clearly at the end of his patience about this. He uncrossed his arms and opened them, gloved palms up, as if to say  _ what the fuck?  _ The kid made a plaintive whine, unsettled at their building tempers, looking up to his armoured guardian. Lu couldn't help herself though, feeling frustrated and angry about all this. At first it had just been at herself, but now Mando was adding to it by being prickly. 

"Yes  _ peaceful _ . Not  _ harmless _ . There's a big fuckin' difference." She bit, pointing at him with the free hand that'd been on her hip. Frustration at its peak. She tried to mind her words around the kid but her filter just left the atmosphere. The walking humanoid wall of beskar dared scoff and shook his head at the grass at his feet, putting his big gloved hands on his knees. The scoff only served to raise her ire. He's being a  _ dick _ .

"Of course a  _ Mandalorian  _ would fuckin' confuse the two!  _ Augh _ !" She snapped, angrily throwing her hands up in the air, blaster still in her right hand, minding her trigger etiquette. Turning back to the rock, facing away from him again. Dropping her arms and letting them hit her legs. 

_ Light forsake you and your blasters.  _ She complained internally. Looking up at the sky, taking in a deep breath. Internally moving through her anger. She brushed her dark blonde fringe from her eyes with her left hand and then adjusted her blue-grey headscarf and then the old faded black leather belt of her pants. Right hands fingers wiggling against the body of the little EC-17, finger down away from the trigger. Lu's hand was starting to cramp from being unused to holding a firearm, the grip totally different from a sword. She fidgeted in annoyance, trying to find an outlet for the frustration in her that didn't involve speaking or directing it at Mando. A few moments of silence passed between them, until the Mandalorian heaved another sigh, modulated with that metallic sheen. 

"I don't want a repeat of Tatooine." Mando said, tone deep and trying to be diplomatic; not hard necessarily. But there were a lot of things there she couldn't make out. Lu suddenly felt frozen in place. The Toro fiasco had made him angry, though not at her. He'd been disappointed in her and made the point to tell her that she'd let her guard down that much. She'd gotten pissed at him and sat in sullen silence a while behind him in the cockpit; but he'd been right. She was disappointed in herself, but his made it worse. 

"Sorgan… made you complacent-made  _ me  _ too." He said quickly, darkly, at the end of his statement. As if letting himself be soft was a bad thing and that he needed to own it just as much as she should. And as much as her stubbornness wanted to make her argue about it; Mando was right,  _ again _ . She  _ had _ gotten complacent. 

Leaving her daggers in her _bag?_ What a fool ass move that was. Nearly four weeks spent in glorious tranquility had seemingly eroded away much of the suspicious edge she used to carry. Lu was an entirely different person now than she had been on Nevarro. She may still use the name Alura Lumenya. But in truth, Alura's death began on Nevarro the moment she laid eyes on Mando and his little green-skinned ward, she was then put to rest in the fertile soil of Sorgan. Lu was _just_ _Lu_ for now, but it felt right, right now, even if she was still getting used to it. 

The man-shaped wall of beskar's careful admission made her anger dissipate. She sighed, feeling defeated. She shook her head, looked down at the grass but still couldn't turn back to him and the kid sitting on that rock. Nursing the realization of the metaphorical truth bomb he dropped. 

"...You're not wrong." She stated finally when she'd worked through her stubbornness about it. Tone dry and edged, still. She wasn't ready to let him know he'd won out fully, yet. The Mandalorian made another deep, resigned sigh, and suddenly Lu heard him stand. He walked over to her, heavy foot falls in her senses punctuating the gentle  _ ring _ of his armour. He came to a stop next to her, she had to look up to look at his helmets face as he faced her squarely. He was so  _ broad _ , she felt so small for a moment. 

"It's not a sword. You're focusing too hard, you don't need to." His voice was suddenly more gentle, trying to communicate and actively  _ teach _ . Lu appreciated the change in tactic, here. Because so far trying to do this metaphorically blind wasn't working. He stood next to her, unholstering one of his blasters from his right hip. A big, heavy looking thing that made the small blaster in her hands look downright pathetic. She knew he could dual wield, right and left both. Lu however, had no hope of ever being that ambidextrous. 

She watched him, his posture, trying to glean clues as to how he's so accurate with such ease. Lu didn't recall seeing him miss a single shot on Nevarro, and she wouldn't be surprised if her memory wasn't as frazzled on that fact as the rest of the entire escapade. His body relaxed, shoulders loose; thick arms down at his sides, dark cape shifting in the gentle breeze. 

"Your focus doesn't determine where the bolt goes. Your  _ arm _ does. The blaster is an  _ extension _ of your hand. The bolt is the extension of the  _ blaster _ ." He was looking right at her while he spoke, not even at the target. He raised the blaster and pulled the trigger, so quickly she nearly jumped her skin but she'd been keen enough to see his movement change to give her warning. 

"Relax, point, shoot. See?" he asked her, looking then at the target. Lu looked too. And her jaw could've hit the ground, shocked. But not surprised.

Dead fucking center. He hadn't even been looking at it when he'd fired. How does he  _ do _ that? She was starting to get it. Made sense. Using a sword, the way she fought; it was about focus and sizing up one's opponent, watching them for the optimal place to strike. Her people were short of stature and not known for physical strength so they made up for it in other ways. The blaster seemingly, was the complete opposite. Hitting the target anywhere was effective, using the range to ones advantage. 

" _ Gods damn. _ " She couldn't help the curse tumbling out. He looked back to her and made that humoured huff sound, shaking his head a bit; he holstered his blaster and put his hands on his hips in a smooth motion. For a man covered in undoubtedly heavy gear, he moved with such ease that it still surprised her all these weeks later. The kid giggled at them from behind, sitting on the rock. Lu couldn't help but crack a smirk over her shoulder at the kid, flicking her blonde fringe from her eyes. 

"Try again." the Mandalorian said, nodding down at her. "Relax, aim with your body, your arm." He stepped over, behind her; she was squared to the target.

"Here." He put a big gloved hand on her left shoulder; she was admittedly tense, and only tensed more with his touching but it  _ wasn’t  _ from being uncomfortable. Being frustrated and angry over this whole ordeal had moved into her body, sure. But his hand on her felt  _ good _ . She couldn't help but tense up from the wicked  _ ripple _ that rushed through her before she could mentally clamp down. This was  _ absolutely  _ not the time nor place. 

"Relax.  _ Relax. _ " Mando's direction was strangely tender. Still gruff, and perhaps trying to be professional under the metallic sheen of the modulator.

Lu breathed in and called for  _ Serenity.  _ Feeling the daylight on her face, the sandy Lothal soil beneath the soles of her boots. Forcing herself to  _ feel _ the surroundings instead of the limited distance between their bodies; instead of his hand on her shoulder. He was  _ so tall _ compared to her; He and Cara were nearly the same height but he was still the taller of the two. Lu almost felt enveloped in his presence. She grounded her feet and the tension fell from her shoulders as she exhaled, looking to the target; Lu let  _ Serenity _ lead her, even if her grip on it was tentative. Mando shifted, leaning in and cupped the back of her right upper arm in his big black and yellowed gloved hand, raising her arm and blaster to the target. His left hand still on her shoulder.

"Don't think about it. Just shoot." He instructed calmly behind her. Lu inhaled and pressed the trigger before she could let herself think too hard about it.

The bolt screeched over the grasses and hit the rock, not center of the target but on the right side of the outer circle he'd scratched. Lu stared for a second, unsure she'd actually hit it. Sure, it was still wide, but she  _ had _ hit the target. She couldn't help but smirk, feeling a little pride. 

"Much better." He told her, warmth in his tone as he dropped his hands and stepped back from her, seemingly a little quickly? Lu was too distracted by her small victory to notice. Damn the part of her that didn't want him to, though. His hands felt _good_. Warm, tender, and _welcome_. The kid made some happy, congratulatory sounds, wiggling away in his brown jumpsuit on the rock. He made up-arms at Mando as he turned away from Lu. He walked over to the kid and picked him up. Holstering the blaster in its leathered pouch attached to her belt, she chuckled. 

"Huh. Yeah. The  _ communicating _ helped." Lu said with a smirk, feeling bold and dropping the implication that if he wanted to teach, he needed to actually do so. However, Mando just made a half-grunt sound in affirmation at her statement from over his shoulder. She'd take that as he got the hint.

Following along behind him in the grass, they walked past the edge of the rock formations, back to the Crest and their camp. Mando had gone to the trouble of setting out a couple of empty cargo boxes around a small makeshift firepit he'd set up. Something to sit on to keep them off the ground. No trees to speak of around them. Just tall rocky spires and grass and rolling hills. 

The three of them spent the afternoon near the camp. The kid got tired and eventually fell asleep in Lu's lap. Mando was up in the Crest, puttering about doing whatever. In the peacefulness, Lu reached out with her feelings. Hearing Lothals  _ song _ ; deep and ancient and yet warm. Soothing and peaceful, but strong. The wildlife here also plentiful, She could  _ hear  _ and sense them in  _ Song _ and Force both. 

Her connection to The Force seemed to be repairing itself. She'd cut herself off, a long time ago, to better hide from the Empire. Enarra had taught her how, having done the same; telling her only to do it if she felt it absolutely necessary. Lu had gone out into the Galaxy only a few months before the first death star had come to Yavin. Where the Rebel base her people still lived in had come dangerously close to being destroyed like Alderaan. Lu had heard what'd happened as the galactic civil war broke out, only ensuring that she clamped down harder while out in the Galaxy on her own. But by then, she was too afraid to return home, too, lest she accidentally be followed by any Imperials. 

The Empire had used dark side Force users for years to chase down any remaining Jedi after the Fall. The only way to ensure Enarra and she hadn't ended up an accidental beacon, was to let go of their connection to those abilities. Stay quiet, stay low, stay  _ safe.  _ Kept on the move, often separated so as to attract even less attention. Keeping secret meant staying alive. And the battle at yavin, so soon after Alderaans destruction, terrified her to her core. Made herself swear that she'd never go back until the Empire was gone. They crumbled five years ago, and she still hadn't gotten brave enough to go back. Now, she didn't know if she ever  _ wanted  _ to. 

The kid had reawoken her connection when they'd locked eyes. And slowly, she was becoming familiar with the Force again. The increase in visions like she hadn't had since she was a child was the largest indication. While Lu couldn't move things like some force users, that was not where her line's strength lay. It was within the Force's ability to show you past, present and future. The gift of  _ sight _ within the mystical energies that held the Galaxy together; to read the  _ The Song _ . Her grandmother had predicted nearly every facet of her own life correctly. There was a story that Arruuna's first words to Qui-Gon Jinn upon his arrival as ambassador for the Republic as a young Jedi knight was  _ 'about time you showed up' _ . Lu had never known either of them, but Enarra often said Lu got her sass from her grandmother so she figured it was likely true. 

Late afternoon waned into evening. Lu and Mando both sat apart on their prospective cargo boxes. Small fire between them of dry grass and various things strewn about and some firestarters Mando had in the ship. Lu had a clay cup of hot tea in her hands, some of the same from Sorgan that Omera had been kind enough to give them. She was surprised at herself for not missing kaf more, now. Kid waddling around looking at small rocks and chasing bugs. 

"Tomorrow, we'll continue." Mando stated, tone no-nonsense like he expected her to disagree… Again. 

"Fine. After a run and maybe some sword drills." Lu retorted over the rim of her cup, elbows on her knees, watching the kid in the waning evening light. Mando's T vizor looked over at her, posture slightly puzzled. She looked back at him, sensing his gaze, "Yes, Mando. We got complacent. So, that changes tomorrow."

"You're taking it seriously, then?" he asked, edged with a bit of snark. Back straight, crossing his arms across his broad beskar chest plate again. He held his visor to her, she could  _ feel _ him looking at her. 

"Me? Not serious? Noo that doesn't sound like me at all!" Lu said dramatically, her tone full of sarcasm as she made to clutch an imaginary pearl necklace for emphasis with her free hand. Then she huffed and continued plainly. "... I haven't  _ had _ to be serious, but that's different now."

"What's different?" He asked after another humoured half-huff at her theatrics. Absolutely unaware of how loaded a question that was. He was still looking at her, helmet as always blank for lack a face, but his posture was curious. Lu brushed her fringe from her eyes and looked back at the kid. She didn't know if her face would give her away if she kept looking at him. 

_ Sorry kiddo, I gotta tell a half truth and use you as a smoke bomb _ … Lu internally apologized, knowing damn well if she tried to say too much, she may end up down a path of his questioning that she didn't want to deal with. She was still trying to figure herself out. 

"Him." She stated, gesturing with her chin to the little guy. Little three fingered hands up in the air, waddling after bugs in the grass. Mando dragged his visor from her to look back over at the child. She put her cup down on her crate next to her. Fiddling with her headscarf idly instead. 

"Hm-yeah. He… has that effect." The Mandalorian admitted, his voice a surprising tangle of emotions. Lu recalled his adventure on Arvala-7 to get the kid, facing off against an assassin droid. 

"Those big eyes got to you, too, huh?" She asked knowing the answer, smiling over at the Mandalorian. He stiffened a little, but surprised her by speaking openly. 

"He… Reminded me of me. As an-a kid." Mando said after a breath. Metallic rasp laden with emotion, but at the end he quickly changed his words. 

"An orphan." She said more truthfully for him. Softly. His admission surprised her. She hoped this meant that he was feeling more okay with sharing snippets of personal details. Where once him sharing had scared her, familiarity with this man not something she had yet realized was possible while still being  _ safe _ . Where familiarity meant she may grow soft on him, and even if Lu didn't want to admit it to herself, a part of her knew it had already happened. 

Mando stayed quiet, just nodding in the affirmative. He kept his visor out on the kid. His posture taking a slump like the weight of parental responsibility was a heavy task for him, sitting on his cargo box. Putting his elbows to his knees. Dark woolen cape, rich brown leathers all black in the deepening evening; armour however still gleamed, reflecting any and all light; soft blues and greys against bright orange and gold. Flames from the fire flickered on the angles, insets and protrusions of the detailing of his helmet. A man of flesh and blood, encased in a shrine of Mandalorian Gods of war and weaponry. Mando'a made real. 

He seemed so  _ lonely _ . Lu couldn't get him saying he didn't  _ belong _ on Sorgan, in the village, out of her head. It made her heart ache for him. She sighed. For all his behaviour aligning with what she knew of Mandalorian culture, some aspects like the armour wearing obviously taken to an extreme, he still wasn't a Mandalorian by blood. And she supposed that even in a culture where your armour is your identity, that could still feel alienating, internally.

"Mandalorians found me-like I found him." He said, breaking the silence. His deep smoky voice was pained yet it rang  _ true _ . She felt a kind of honour, him speaking as openly as he was; it showed a kind of trust he had in her. She dared press further. 

"How old were you?" She asked gently, still looking over at him. She leaned forward on her crate a smidge, stretching her back, arms down at her sides. She was much improved, most aches and pains from her ribs gone, but her newly healed muscles still stiff. He sat in contemplative silence a moment, still looking to the kid, fortunately not seeming put off by her asking. 

"I was... very small. Few months before my ninth birthday. Near the end of the Clone War." His voice was becoming less pained, though he still sounded sad behind the deadpan tone he was forcing. It hurt, still, hearing him like this. She wanted to know more about him, but was unsure if she was worthy of him retreading painful memories to satisfy her curiosity. She figured he was older than her, though by how much she'd been unsure. Lu herself was born within the first year after Palpatine declared himself Emperor; Enarra had conceived her some time before the war itself was declared over. So that made The Mandalorian at least eight years older than her, potentially more. Older than she'd expected, perhaps, though it wasn't a bother. If anything it made her attraction to him worse; she was not proud about seemingly being drawn to older men. At least this one, even after a month, hadn't flown any red flags. 

He was a complicated man, who hunted people and sometimes had to kill in order to make his way in the Galaxy. But that didn't mean that he hadn't become a  _ good _ man, despite everything. No one was perfect, by any means. Lu herself had plenty of skeletons in plenty of closets. But Lu knew what truly bad men were like and the short spoken, armoured man did not check many points on the list, profession aside. 

"So young…" Lu softly blurted, somewhat surprised he'd been so new to the universe yet managed to survive such hardships of a Mandalorians life; she felt her face crack in surprise. She cleared her throat, and tried to smooth her expression. "You should be proud that you have come as far as you have, given the hand you were dealt." Lu told him plainly.

He looked back at her, posture still seeming sad, in a way. He sat on his cargo box, elbows on his beskar thigh plates, big hands between his knees. But he was surprised, shifting again. She could almost chuckle, he was so obviously unaccustomed to being spoken of in a positive fashion. Decided to go for the gusto, she continued. 

"I'm sorry. For what I said, you know-on Nevarro." She said to him, smiling sadly. She felt like this was a good opportunity to tell him, him seeming a little pensive at the topic of the kid; positive reinforcement would likely do him good. She didn't want Mando thinking he wasn't right for the little goblin. 

"What you said?" His posture was confused. 

"About being an inadequate caretaker. I take it back, and absolutely do not believe that. I was wrong." She made her voice ring true, but soft. Nodding to him for emphasis. He straightened, seeming surprised.

"You and him make a good pair." She told him. Mando stared at her a moment before shifting, locking her in the center of the inky black T of his helmet, still uncomfortable with praise. Posture gone awkward. 

"... Thank you." He rasped eventually. Voice strangled behind the modulator. Plainly unsure if he should say anything more. Or maybe it was he didn't know if he wanted to say more? She couldn't tell. 

They sat in silence for a while, in the firelight. The sky was losing light fast. The brightest stars already beginning to twinkle above. Lu found herself just enjoying the Mandalorians company, listening to the ambient noises of Lothal in the twilight. The little waddling steps of the kid, insects chirping. The grasses swaying gently in a slight breeze, causing rippling waves spreading across the rolling hills off in the horizon. Everything blanketed in the dull muted blues and greys of twilight. 

A group of life forms was cresting one of the hills off in the distance against the slowly darkening sky. Four legged and big. Lu  _ felt _ one, at the front. A  _ huge  _ Lothwolf, with a small pack behind it. She sensed curiosity, they were coming to see what these life forms were in their lands. The kid stopped and turned to Lu as she reached out with her feelings; expressing a warm greeting and a desire to stay peacefully for a few days. 

There was talk the wolves were extinct, but rumours of sightings years ago made it seem less likely. Lu's attention was pulled back to the camp as Mando noticed them, having followed her gaze across the plains. Immediately becoming tense realizing the potential danger of the large predators. He stood seemingly ready to get into action immediately; Lu immediately stood. Reaching her hand up and grabbing his arm firmly, stopping him before he could take a step. 

"Don't. They don't mean any harm. Just coming to have a look. Making sure we're no trouble." She said quickly. The big one threw its head up and howled, the rest following. Their voices rang out quietly over the distance of the grassy plains. They were quite a ways away; Mando was going to go grab his rifle, but Lu would be having none of that. Not even warning shots. The  _ wolves _ owned this land. They were merely guests. 

"Sit. Please." She told him firmly, pulling on his arm downward for emphasis. Amazingly, Mando sat back down, armour clinking; seeming confused. 

"How are you sure?" Metallic ring questioning. 

"I can feel their intentions." She said, walking past the fire over to the kid. "Come on little one." She picked the kid up who gave a disgruntled noise for ruining his fun. and walked back to the crates, plunking him in Mando's lap before sitting back on her own. 

"How'd you know what  _ I _ was gonna do?" He asked again, slightly flustered. The three of them looked back up at the lothwolves as they disappeared off into the quickly advancing night. 

"There's that Mandalorian thing where you like to meet every problem with blasters as the solution. So it wasn't a hard guess." She teased him. The kid laughed as he fidgeted turning around to look up at Mando. Who in turn, made his disgruntled sigh and shook his head. The armoured man looked down at the kid, his big ears perked up; feeling happy. Lu rested her elbows on her knees, and her chin in a gloved hand, watching the two of them. 

"This two against one thing ain't fair." Mando half-griped, though his tone was playful as the kid pat-patted his little hands against his chest plate and bandolier. Mando's big gloved hands under his little arms, helping the child stand on his lap. Lu couldn't help but chuckle. 

"Ohh shush, it's good for you. Builds  _ character. _ " Lu teased, smiling wide at the two of them.

Mando and his little green kid. The perfect duo to win her over, being so good and wholesome when her life had been everything but. As much as she may still be loath to admit it, these two made her days better. The armoured man made his humoured huff, which made her smile wide. 

_ One day, Mandalorian. And I'm going to make you piss yourself laughing, I swear.  _ She promised internally. She wanted to hear him laugh. And, he could probably use one. 

"You hungry?" She asked them, feeling like she could use some dinner. 

"I could eat." He replied plainly. The kid made some happy gurgles. 

Night fell, thick and warm and black as Lu puttered around the camp, tidying from their dinner. Mando was back up in the Crest with the kid, trying to get him to bed. She sat outside under the blanket of star splattered night once she'd put everything away in the hold. Lothal was a beautiful place, rugged and more arid than Sorgan. But had its own charm. It was simultaneously understated and yet vibrant. The night air smelled good on the breeze; grasses and pollen and earthy notes. 

Falling into the natural rhythm of Lothal around her, Lu hummed idly. Looking up at the sky for any constellations she may recognize. She had no idea if she'd ever been here or near this system in her life, but if she looked hard enough she may find something familiar. Pretty certain she'd never been on Lothal, Enarra hadn't been either as she likely would've had a lesson to teach from the tale. Lu'd forgotten half the places she'd ever been, so many stories she’d been told there were so many. Somehow, staying on the move with the kid and the Mandalorian in his Razor Crest felt kind of like that, in a good way. 

Leaning back on her palms, legs stretched out where she sat on her crate by the fire, now reduced to dull red embers; Lu's hums turned into proper sung notes. High and sweet. Melody falling in step with the gentle rustling of the grasses and chirping of insects. Wondering how long they'd stay on Lothal before heading out. Too long in one spot and eventually more Hunters with fobs would track them down.

Lu hoped that the cosmos favoured the kid enough to let them have a little peace for a while. And, for Mando's sake too. She hadn't forgotten that carbon scoring on his chest, he'd now buffed off. He'd fessed up what happened when she'd pressed him during hyperspace. Taking a sniper bolt to the chest, sending him flying off his speeder bike which ended up destroyed. Bloody reckless, and the only thing that saved Mando from an early grave, was the beskar. Sometimes, Lu wondered how much regard he really had for his own safety. Not necessarily that he actively had a death wish, but that he couldn't give a fuck when or how Death comes to claim him. 

And Lu felt that wasn't just Mandalorian hubris. Mandalorians  _ value _ life, regardless of the violent and dangerous warrior culture they led. Living life ferociously. Never did anything half-assed. But Mando in his case, seemed resigned to this distant cut-off life. And it wasn't just the helmet-stays-on rule. His attitude and recklessness reminded Lu of her  _ own  _ problems with darkness. Wasn't too long ago she'd solve her problems by either sleeping till they weren't a problem, or by just running away. Just because he wasn't moping around like she used to, didn't mean he wasn't struggling. That he wasn't reckless unknowingly, tempting Death itself, perhaps? Lu couldn't be sure, on that, yet.

He'd been so young.  _ Too _ young to lose his parents. She thanked the God's internally for the Mandalorians finding him as a boy, continuing to sing; though that life could, in no way, have been easy. Still had they not, he wouldn't have saved the child; either wouldn't have been alive to do so, or lived and lacked the training Mandalore provides. And the child would be at the evil whims of the remnants of the Empire. The Empire that still wanted the kid. Lu wondered if the anxiety she felt over that was similar to how Enarra felt about the Empire finding Lu. She'd come to see the kid as her own ward, too. 

"You sound sad." Mando's metallic sheen cut through her thoughts as she paused for a breath, voice tentative. Concerned and unsure if he should have even been listening. She'd been so deep in her ponders while singing she hadn't heard him walk up to the crates from the ship. 

"Was I?" She blurted. She hadn't been paying attention and her thoughts had started to go to dark places. So, it wouldn't surprise her. 

"Uh… Yeah." His voice was strained as he sat on his crate, cape billowing as he lowered. Posture unsettled under the blanket of stars. Armour reflecting dark rich blues, hints of gentle golden light from the interior of the ship illuminating him. Leathers and wools all black in contrast. The embers in the fire weren't providing light, now, just some residual warmth. 

"Not intentional. Just makin' notes." She said casually, leaning to one side to wave idly at him. As if she could shoo his worry away. 

"You… Sing like that a lot?" He asked, still sounding so unsure of making conversation. 

"Sometimes…" Lu replied. Strangely not minding talking about it, having emotionally moved away from the profession, now. 

"At certain points in life all I did was sing. Every night sometimes. Bars, cantinas and taverns. Eventually moving up to more money I made the Hutts. Tours and shows. A lot of work. Either performing or working on the next performance. Oh, the best ones were the couple gigs at a brothel. Biiig production. Still got the costume for that one." She chuckled, "I uh, wasn't  _ supposed _ to keep it…" and admitted. 

Mando was sitting, hunched with his elbows on his knees, but turned and was listening to her. Nodding as she spoke, shaking his head ruefully at her admission of keeping the costume. He stiffened momentarily when she dared mention the brothel, as she knew he would. So  _ sensitive _ for a man so dangerous. 

"What? The Hutts wouldn't miss the credits for the get up anyway…" she cleared her throat, glossing over. "The first show was a  _ nightmare _ . Broke a heel, so I had to wear another girls footwear. My feet were  _ not _ happy. And then some drunks decided to get in a fight and one spilled his whole drink on me. I got so pissed." She laughed outright at the memory, "He got the bottle of whatever it was across his fool skull for it."

She made like she was swinging a bottle downward from above her head. Mando looked like he damn near could chuckle. Shaking his head again, helmet swiveling side to side. But his posture said he was amused by the antics. 

_ Damn so close.  _ She thought to herself. 

"Sounds… Exciting." He said, deadpan tone again, looking back out to the night drenched plains. 

"Hm, sure? But to tell the truth, I'm not sure I want to go back." Lu admitted, shifting and dropping her gaze to her feet. Shuffling. Feeling weirdly melancholy but brave enough to speak about it openly under Lothals night sky. 

"Really? Seems like… it's a better life than running from Hunter's and Imperials… " He sounded like he believed that, almost sad? Begrudging, too, almost. She turned and very deliberately gave him a wilted look, flicking her fringe out of her eyes. 

"Don't be stupid." She told him, teasingly. His visor snapped over to her in surprise, shoulders gone tense in confusion. She sighed at him and shook her head, wry grin on her face. Trying to find a way to express what her life had been like, her voice caught in her throat a moment. 

"... A gilded cage, is  _ still _ a cage Mando." Lu couldn't help herself sounding sad, "It's… only pretty from the outside looking in."

"Cage?" 

"I didn't get to call my own shots for a long time; fought tooth and nail for that. The whole thing started because… Because  _ he _ said I had the goods to be successful. He ran my life, then the Hutts did..." Lu forced herself to keep casual, though speaking of the man that tried to ruin her for his own greed wasn't as painful as it had once been. 

"The Zygerrian." He stated carefully, looking at her. Black T void dead center to her. 

"Yup. That's how I got convinced. ' _ You're going to be famous and have the whole galaxy to love you like I do.'  _ he'd told me… Bought that hook, line, and sinker." Lu sighed heavily, scuffing a rock with the toe of her boot. Feeling a little heartsick "I was so young and stupid. I ignored every damn red flag." 

"Why?" His metallic voice was soft, but definitely confused. Lu couldn't help a bitter smirk at the night-washed grass. Unable to look back at him. She still felt shame even after all this time, but letting him in on some of these details wouldn't hurt. She didn't know if she could yet bare to tell him everything. The worst parts. 

"Looking like I do… It was just a reminder to my people I have foreign blood. After my mother's death, there was no place for me." she scoffed, "I was so lonely.  _ Desperate _ to be treated with any kind of love. I'd have given anything to find a place where-where I-" Lu's voice broke, pain bubbled and broke through her resolve in that moment. Something in her was momentarily afraid to tell him. She knew she sometimes made it look easy, she had no problem conversing with strangers. But it was always there, the knowledge that she was out of place. Didn't  _ belong _ ; Sorgan had been the first place where she had been met with kindness even after being discovered. The insecurity of being found out and rejected for things she didn't ask for and couldn't control an ever present demon.

Too human for Kibahrr. To Kibahrri for humans. With mismatched hair and mismatched eyes. 

"... Belonged?" Mando surprised her by speaking. His tone was matter of fact, but gentle, knowing. He was still sitting with his elbows on his knees, but he'd turned, angled on the box to more directly face her. Seeming intent, calmly taking in her words. 

Sometimes he might be momentarily clueless, but the Mandalorian was in no way, a stupid man. He was far more empathetic to people in need than she could have ever imagined from a bounty hunter; he tried to understand and gave, sometimes, too much grace to others. Toro Callahan, coming to mind. Lu huffed and looked at him, a sad half-grin on her face. The fact he was even paying attention enough to bother finishing her sentence? Just another small thing that strangely meant so much. It felt strange, to feel  _ heard _ . 

"Yeah." She said with a rueful grin. "Guess I'm not as good at keeping shit to myself anymore." Lu couldn't help a snarky chuckle, feeling weirdly bitter. Shaking her head at herself, headscarf and blonde hair swaying. 

Losing her filter, being so familiar, like this. So casual with a man so dangerous; a man whom she would have disregarded a month ago had he not been Mandalorian. A regular hunter? Not worth her time. A silence stretched between them a moment as he seemed to be struggling with the need to say something. He sat up and straightened his back, looking at her. 

"Dont." He rasped.

"Don't what?" 

"Don't… Keep it to yourself. Don't feel like you don't belong." His deep metallic rumble was the gentlest she'd heard him, saying that. She couldn't help her breath catching, staring at him with thinly veiled shock. He made his usual resigned sigh, and stood. That was easier said than done, of course, the belonging part. But it seemed he was trying to say she could rely on him without saying it outright. Since she couldn't read his face, sometimes she still couldn't figure him out completely. Silently she sent a prayer to the God's she wasn't wrong.

"Come on." He ordered gruffly before she could think of anything to reply. Standing abruptly and then stepping past the boxes and going towards the Razor Crest. Boots heavy on the loose, rocky soil of Lothal, cape flapping in the darkness behind him. "Got something for you."

"For me? You've already leant me the blaster?" Curiosity and confusion both swirled in her, but Lu got up and followed him; the fire was out and it was growing cool in the night anyway. 

The Mandalorian didn't say anything, just waved at her to follow. Over and then quietly up the side ramp into the gently lit hold of the Razor Crest. Pausing to check on the kid, fast asleep in the narrow bunk. He quietly went up the ladder to the cockpit, but then waited. Lu ascended after, and the two of them were in the airlock space behind the cockpit. Close and dim; her heart was picking up. 

_ What's he got up his sleeve here?  _ She was at a complete loss for what he could want to show her. She just craned her head up at him, quirking an eyebrow. 

Mando pressed the door controls above the ladder portal, and the wall  _ behind _ him opened. Another section of the ship she hadn't noticed was there. Granted it's not like she had been looking. He stepped in, and over to the corner, she followed him. Dimly lit in the small square space, a few small amber ambient lights above the doors. There was cloth hanging from some sections where he'd fashioned it to two corners of the room along the side of the far wall. In the one corner, her staff propped up with her cloak draped over the top of it, her big leather bag on the floor. 

"It's small. And uh, next to the reactor." He gestured to the next set of doors behind where he was standing in the corner. Voice almost sheepish, unsure of how'd she'd react. "But it does at least have the door for privacy." He pointed back at the airlock behind her. "Its normally for storage. But no Bounty Guild jobs right now. It's not seeing much use."

Lu was speechless. Did he mean for this to be  _ her  _ room? In  _ his _ ship? She stared in disbelief. It wasn't often she could find herself at a loss for words. Was this what he'd meant when he told her to not feel like she didn't belong? She couldn't stop staring at  _ him _ , the amber light reflecting off his raw beskar _.  _ Never mind the tiny room where he'd already brought up her things.

"Hope you don't mind a hammock, either. But I figured you're small and light enough shouldn't be much bother till we can source a better solution." He gestured to the hanging cloth. Of course, a hammock, and already thinking of better solutions? 

_ Light save me. Why, God's, did you see him fit to have this a big heart just to make him hide it away? To bury it under the beskar and never let him show his face? You are a cruel lot to do this to him… And to  _ me _. _

Lu couldn't find words to voice; she dare not vocalize even an ounce of her internal monologue, she'd definitely cry. Her face cracked, but she tried to chuckle a bit to distract from all the things this made her feel. He didn't need to go to any trouble, at all, but he  _ had.  _ She hadn't really bothered thinking to ask what he'd been doing, puttering around in the Crest off and on all day. 

"It's not much-but better than sleeping on the floor." He said, tone being professional but he seemed happy about the situation. 

Happy. That was the strangest thing. He was  _ happy _ she was around. He'd been happy to see her still at the Crest when he'd returned from Toro's betrayal out in the Dune Sea. Even if he'd returned to a hostile situation, not that hostility was a thing he worried about, Lu had sensed his  _ relief  _ upon seeing her. He spent plenty of time just  _ watching _ her, enjoying her presence seemingly just as much as she'd come to enjoy his. Sure, they could bicker a little, but Mando never raised his voice at her. He was by and large, a caring and respectful man. 

"It's perfect." She told him, after a moment. Gaining control of the flood of emotions. He seemed to perk up even more, perhaps feeling some pride about their new arrangement. Lu had to admit, the Mando was being clever. If he wanted to keep her around, this behaviour was going to ensure she couldn't ever leave him. 

_ How dare he be so good.  _

"Should get some sleep. Got work to do in the morning." He said, nodding to her before exiting her room and descending down the ladder to the hold and his own bunk. 

Just like on Sorgan, she replied, "Yeah. Goodnight, Mando."

That first night on Lothal, laying in the hammock Mando fashioned for her, half naked in just a spare tanktop and a pair of underwear from her bag; gloves, socks and all off for her comfort. In truth she had always enjoyed just being naked, nudity never a taboo thing amongst her people; showing off the glimmer of their markings referred to as  _ the water of the kyber _ , the same name given to the luster of the crystals themselves. Lu took her headscarf off too, and balled with her long sleeved shirt under her head for a bit of a pillow in the hammock. Though it took her a moment to get up into it, but once she did it was comfortable. It felt good to feel so  _ vulnerable  _ and yet know that here, in the grey metal of the Razor Crest, she was safe. The  _ Mando  _ helped her feel safe here, in the ship he  _ matched _ . 

Lu recalled her vivid dream where she'd wrapped her naked legs around his leathered and armoured waist and his beskar bit into her thighs as he took her. Mind eventually wandering over the events of the day. Mando's big, gentle hands on her shoulders teaching her to shoot. On Tatooine when he helped her up and steadied her, her elbows feeling so small in his hands. In a way, it made her recollection of her carnal fantasy even more real. She knew the feelings of his hands better now then when she'd had that dream the night before fighting the raiders on Sorgan.

_ Light save me.  _ She cursed internally as her pulse quickened, thinking of how her body reacted to his presence, how it was reacting now. Her dream, and the flaming mythosaur skull that appeared, white hot light reflecting off his helmet as she looked up at him full of need. His armoured chest pressed against her. In the present Lu slipped an ungloved hand, nails a glimmer in the dim amber light, beneath the fabric of her underwear and between her legs. 

She was already riled, wet under the dark fabric. It was a wicked thing, doing this to herself in  _ his _ ship. Different than the morning in the barn. Knowing Mando was down in his own bunk, completely unaware of what he was evoking in her. She had to bite her lip to keep from making noise. To stop herself from moaning his moniker, his given name as she rubbed over herself. Sliding her fingers inside and eventually reaching orgasm. Legs twitching, hips writhing as she had to hold her breath to keep silent.  _ Wanting  _ him. 

If she was feeling braver she may have just gone down there and jumped him. But his dedication to his Creed, and being guilty about Omera's feelings still, kept her in check.

The next several days wore in a steady rhythm. Wake, get a run in, eat breakfast with the kid while Mando ate in the ship. Blaster practice, the first day they'd nearly gotten into arguments due to frustration on both their parts, but smoothed it over as she kept trying. He was finding his stride in becoming more comfortable speaking with her. Even being downright  _ encouraging _ .

Then lunch, and in the afternoons she'd relax and spend time with the kid, napping out in the warm Lothal grasses, sitting against a rock in the sun. Mando would either putter around the Crest himself, go nap, or occasionally wander off to wherever by himself. A couple afternoons returning with a couple birds for fresher meat as their stores from the village dwindled; cooked over the fire. Before dinner she'd fetch her staff from the ship and go do her sword drills. After, she and Mando would sit in front of the fire pit, just as they had sat on the porch of the barn on Sorgan; she'd sip tea. 

Her body was bouncing back. Every day she improved, her muscles sore and calluses were forming in her hands from use. But she was getting stronger, less winded doing her drills; slicing her mean looking rectangular blade through the dry Lothal air. 

By the third day, Lu Mando saw her a good enough standing shot, to advance her to moving targets. Her hand no longer cramped from the unfamiliarity of holding a blaster. He'd throw rocks and she'd have to shoot them. The first day of that, she'd only managed one, by the end of day two she was hitting about half the rocks he'd throw. The Mandalorian, that evening admitted being impressed with her progress as they sat in the deepening night, the kid already asleep in her lap. 

"You keep practicing like this and you might put me out of a job." He'd told her, metallic rumble sounding pleased and maybe even a little proud. She beamed back at him. 

" _ Well _ , it started out rough. But I'd say some of it could be chalked up to  _ your _ improving communication skills, Professor Mandalorian of this masterclass in blasters." She teased, sipping tea. Giving him a smartass look over the rim of her clay cup. 

"Some?" His question was just as teasing as her own jests.

"A little." She said with a shrug and a grin, adding playfully, "I  _ kno _ w I'm a good student." brushing her fringe from her face. 

"You're not wrong." He told her, tone as light as she'd heard him yet.  _ Almost  _ a joke, even. Knowing he was being smart and echoing her own words.

Gods, she didn't even think about the modulator most of the time now, other than when it made his voice hard to gauge. Smokey, rich, and deep; Lu had a wicked desire to hear his natural voice. To give him some  _ reasons  _ to make  _ all kinds  _ of noise. 

  
_ Does he even know what he's doing to me? Gods be good, have mercy on me. _ She prayed internally, looking at the sea of grass in the waning Lothal evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	17. The Kibahrr and the Jedi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lu continues to unravel the threads of the past; an old spirit comes to give her wisdom.

Lu sat on her knees on the Lothal soil, sword sheathed on the ground next to her. She found a small clearing a ways from the camp. It was early, early morning. Everything washed in navy twilight, still. Blue and black. She'd been unable to sleep. 

Something kept  _ pulling _ at her. A sensation and  _ song _ both she did not know; a call she felt the need to answer. It had been building over the past several days. Now prominent enough that it wasn't letting her rest. She'd come out here, quietly sneaking past Mando's bunk where he was asleep with the kid, to swing the sword around to try and tire herself. Thinking perhaps physical exhaustion could win out.

Lothal was so strong in the Force. That ancient Jedi temple was somewhere out there in the grass sea of the planet's plains. This place was like a crux in the Galaxy, Lu could  _ feel  _ it. A place where the Force intersected and overlapped. If she  _ listened _ it was an overwhelming roar of  _ sound _ so many  _ songs _ all in one place.  _ Spirit Songs _ . Not just  _ Living _ ones. A focal point of cosmic entanglement. It was easier to shut out all the  _ sound _ than to try and hone in on any notes individually. 

Lu breathed deep, eyes closed to the darkness of the early morning. Cloak pooled around her, it was cool out enough tonight that she wrapped herself in it over her tank top to keep the cool air off her arms till physical exertion warmed her. She could feel the cool ground beneath her shins beyond the canvas of her pants. Sorgani roughspun headscarf loosely draped around her, but her braids spilled out the back. So long they coiled around her on the ground, like iridescent white plaited serpents. 

_ What is it I am brought here for?  _ She inquired internally. There had been too many coincidences in her life in the past while, it made her feel the Gods were guiding their moves. She felt as though she'd become a piece on the gameboard of the celestials. What the objective was, and what game was even being played was a mystery. The Gods did no favours, mortals not privy to their whims.

Invoking  _ Serenity  _ Lu let herself feel out with the Force. Stretching her awareness, smoothing over every pebble, grain of sand, every blade of grass. Out, out into the deep night. Seeking anything that may clue her in to what seemingly wanted her attention, here. Perhaps it was just the ruins of the temple, somewhere out there in the wilderness. In her mind, the stars above her suddenly became taught strings of light as Lu felt herself caught up in the cosmic tide. Somewhere, in the background she heard the mournful howl of a Lothwolf, long and sad.

Everything shifted. 

Lu opened her eyes. Blackness met her, all around. Despite being met with black abyss, it still felt  _ immense _ . Like the feeling of standing at the very edge of a cliff and looking out over vast wilderness. Leaving her feeling so small, like it could swallow her and she'd be lost in its depths for eternity. Before she could bother feeling afraid a pathway began to take shape before her. Dimly glowing but slowly becoming brighter. Intricate patterns of light tracing along edges and creating meandering trails. Every now and again it looked as though the light trails would form a doorway as she moved through what she was being shown. Pinpoints of light appearing around her, beyond the path and doorways. Curiosity overtaking her anxiety, she suddenly had the sensation of  _ being moved _ . 

Carried along, it felt like forever and yet an instant. Lu had no sense of time, here, no idea how long she'd been led along the path. Eventually, she began to see the pathway would double back in some places. Sometimes it would break off and branch out and never return, continuing beyond where she could see. Far into an eternal horizon. Sometimes a branch would come to a dead end at a doorframe, and beyond she thought she could see people. Places, events. Moving before she could get a good look. In one, she could have sworn she saw her mother but she was in no control here. Her only option was to continue, letting  _ Serenity  _ and the Force show her what she needed. To take her where it needed her to go. 

Eventually she felt like she was treading the same path while never having turned around. The path and doorways all seemed like she'd seen these patterns before but there was still something different about them. Similar, yet different. Like how no two musicians would play the same song identically. Every iteration took on a new nuance, different identities as the music was channeled. Yet, it was still the same  _ song _ . 

The direction she was taken led her to a place where the trails of white light formed a kind of 'room'. Five doorframes in front of her, all blank and empty. Pitch blackness beyond. 

_ Where am I? What is this place? Is this even a place?  _ She pondered. She wasn't afraid, in fact, it was the opposite. She was filled with a sense of calm awe; the same calm she found on Sorgan upon touching the grass all those weeks ago. 

_ Choose.  _ A voice she did not know echoed in the room-that-was-not-a-room. It wasn't a singular voice, but several all at once. 

Above the five doors, the light trails suddenly formed five symbols. One was certainly the sigil of the Jedi Order. One was her mother's Kibahrri sigil; an emberflower with its long five petals. One was the sigil of the ancient Sith, a circle surrounded by four sections jutting out, three points on each end; Enarra had shown her once. And the last was the sigil of the Nightsisters of Dathomir, a five pointed star enshrined in a pattern like the Sith. And one door, left of her mother's Kibahrri sigil-marked door dead ahead of her… The sight of it caused Lu's breath to catch, if she was even breathing in this place. This vision? 

The Nightsister door, and the Jedi door however, were different. The longer she looked, she realized those two doorways, they looked  _ fractured _ . As if a panel of glass that made up the 'surface' was broken. Thin, spider veins of dim silver light indicating the cracks. 

Continuing to take in the scene, looking for anything that might be familiar from Enarra's tales, she noticed the doorway left of the Kibahrri doorway. Above it, traced in the bright white light. The Mandalorian sigil of the Mythosaur skull. Lu stared openly, thinking of her carnal dream of the Mandalorian where it had appeared above his helmeted head. After a moment she pulled her gaze away, forcing herself to continue looking around the room for clues. 

The doors were also each marked by a symbol on the 'floor'. They were similar, yet opposite. Both were centered by a circle. One surrounded by a round four-petaled flower-like motif encircled with four sharp and jagged and three-pointed, sections similar to the Sith sigil. The other, the circle in the center surrounded by the sharp three pointed four sectioned pattern encased in the rounded flower-like motif. 

Lu assumed the voice of many voices meant she was to choose a doorway to pass through. But for what purpose? She did not know. Since the Kibahrri doorway was dead ahead, she approached, suddenly realizing she was now in control of herself. As she neared, the doorway suddenly rippled like a pool of water. Manifesting and shifting with scenes of a battle she didn't recognize. But she recognized the Mandalorians, and the Jedi. Lightsabers crashing against beskar, blasters firing, jetpacks flaring. She blinked, and the scene changed.

A young man she did not recognize; immensely tall and broad with long black hair and mysterious brown eyes, and a  _ Kibahrri _ woman she did not recognize stood apart in a grand hallway. They, and the strange faceless people that meandered through the halls all wore robes,  _ Jedi  _ robes. The man and the Kibahrri woman were looking at each other, their eyes had just met, in this place. A Jedi temple? Lu couldn't tell. But assumed so given their garb. 

Her hair. Her hair wasn't completely Kibahrri. Yes, she had the white braids, a pale golden shift in her iridescence. But, like Lu, her hair was dual toned; Whereas Lu was a dark blonde from Qui-Gons colours, this Kibahrris hair was  _ red _ . A fiery copper red that shone in the light. A  _ cursed _ colour. Red was forbidden, the colour of anger, of pain and suffering; Kibahrr did not invoke  _ Anger _ . The woman's eyes were mismatched. One green and one  _ gold. _

_ Mixed blood _ . Just like Lu. But who was she? The golden shift in her braids was not unusual, Kibahrr iridescence came in a myriad of pale hues of blues, greens, yellows, and some purples though rare. Rarer still, was Lu's white iridescence, with pale shifts of all the colours depending on lighting. It was barely noticeable, but there; though a pale cyan-teal seemed to be her dominant colour. Only Lu's line had colours like that,  _ Iridezria's  _ line. But there was no reason to believe that this unknown Kibahrr could not have also been, perhaps gold was her dominant colour to Lu's pale cyan. She couldn't see to tell what colours were in her  _ water of the kyber _ . There wasn't enough context to give her any more clues to be certain. 

Lu blinked, and the scene changed again. The black haired man cradled the body of the unknown Kibahrri woman, lifeless; the luster of her red hair and white braids dull. Skin devoid of the warmth of life. Both their pale Jedi robes splotched with her blood, spilling from her chest. her spirit waiting to ascend and join the  _ Spirits Song _ . And he let forth a cry of such anguish that Lu's heart raced in her chest. It scared her, but made her soul ache with the pain of his voice. His brown eyes are full of grief. Before her, his tears streaming down his noble visage and landing on the Kibahrri woman's still, lifeless face, was a  _ haunting  _ scene. 

There were five figures around them, just cloaked forms, shrouded, their backs to the sobbing man cradling his dead lover. Then, they walked away from him. Leaving him alone in his grief. His anguish rang in Lu's bones as the drums of  _ War  _ began to fill her senses. The sounds of his sobs shifting from pain, to anger as the drum beats became louder. The drums continued as his cries subsided, he opened his bloody balled fist, and in the palm of his hand, a kyber crystal. It's luster, it's water of the kyber, pitch  _ black.  _ Lu suddenly came to realize who she was seeing. 

_ Tarre Vizsla. Manda'lor the Great. Jedi Knight and true leader of Mandalore.  _

Enarra had been right.

Lu guessed the reason this Kibahrri woman had been struck from their history was in part of her mixed blood. But that she had loved the Manda'lor, and also had been a _Jedi_ _herself_ as well. No wonder the Houses struck her from history, mixed with foreign blood _and_ chose allegiance to the Jedi Order over following whatever her House would have dictated her role be; added with loving a non-Kibahrr, an outsider? A _Mandalorian_ just as Iridezria had? 

Lu stood, frozen in place. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she stared into the scenes beyond the doorway framed in white light. Unable to shake the pain in her chest; she couldn't breathe. The drums of  _ War _ splitting her ears as chanting voices joined the  _ sound _ crashing over her. She was a tangle of emotions, too many things to sort out. Like the pain itself was trying to crush her, as if she was the drum that  _ War  _ struck in time to the chanting. Like soldiers marching across the battlefield. 

_ What is this place? Why am I being shown this? I don't understand! Please, Light. Guide me back. Let me go. Let me go!  _

Her emotions were making her lose focus, the vision becoming skewed.  _ Serenity  _ slipped from her grasp and  _ Fear _ took her. Suddenly she had the sensation of falling, the white lights of the path and doorways, the pinpoints of light beyond in the black abyss all faded away. The chants and drums stopped. Silence. 

Lu sat on her knees on the cool Lothal soil, tears falling from her face, and breathed. Sucking in air as her spirit came back to her body. That  _ vision _ was unlike anything she'd ever known, didn't feel quite like the others she'd experienced. The cries of Tarre Vizsla still rang in her bones as she breathed hard, getting oxygen back into her body. Shaking, moving through her fear as she processed that she'd returned to reality. 

"Well, hello there." a rich, playful yet grand voice spoke. Lu jumped, spooked by the unexpected voice, she couldn't feel any  _ living _ songs of beings near her. 

It was still dark all around, seemingly not much time had passed. She looked around, shifting on her knees. And then, the oddest thing she's seen yet. A robed man appeared, but he wasn't  _ corporeal _ . Not physical. She could see  _ through  _ him, though he had a strange blue glow to him. He dropped his hood as he approached, stopping a few paces away, at the edge of the grasses of the clearing she sat in. The grasses though he was incorporeal still moved as he did. His steps, though, made no sound. 

She knew his face. He was the wizened old man she'd seen in the vision of the Dune Sea at night; the one that spooked Mando when she first stepped on the sands of Tatooine. The hooded hermit across a fire, smiling at her sadly. Just as he smiled sadly at her now. A soft and gentle face. Snowy, pale grey and white hair, beard both. On Tatooine her vision he'd been physical, full of life and colour; was this his spirit? Now that she'd gotten a better look at his face, Lu was momentarily taken aback.

" _ Obi-wan Kenobi?!"  _ She couldn't help her voice. Startled and surprised and confused as fuck. He was  _ much  _ older than when she'd seen him in her vision of the battle of Kibahrr; his hair and beard then auburn. She had no memory of his face the day Enarra had taken her on Tatooine. But she recognized his presence, his  _ song _ from memories so early she could not recall details. "You… you're  _ dead _ ! How? Light save me… have I completely lost it?" 

The blue hued specter chuckled. A warm, gentle sound. It was certainly the Jedi though. His blue eyes the same ones Enarra had looked into all those years ago, fleeing the sandy planet. 

"You should know by now, that physical death is not the end for Jedi,  _ Little Luna. _ " the old Jedi master said to her as she gathered herself up off her knees, processing her shock. His tone at the end of his sentence was knowing and playful, using her childhood nickname. The way his words drolled with his particular cadence was soothing.

She stood and stared at him in shock. Unable to make a sound, at a complete loss for words. Obi-Wan looked at her a moment, waiting for her to speak. He chuckled when she just stared. 

"Come now. Qui-Gon has come to you. Should you be so surprised?" He asked her, voice so kind and warm. 

Her face cracked, sadness bubbling up. Lu was unable to hold back her grief. 

"Why?" She finally spoke. The question weak. Obi-Wan's warm expression changed, becoming sad.

"Why  _ you _ and not-" Lu's voice cracked. Unable to finish…  _ and not my Mother?  _ And a torrent of emotions buried for sixteen years, came bursting forth. Lu's sadness suddenly became  _ anger _ .

" _ WHY?!  _ Why didn't you help her?" Lu snapped at his spirit. An unknown resentment she'd had for the man Enarra had sacrificed so much for exploding out of her. "How dare you show up now! After she's  _ dead _ ! How  _ DARE you! _ " she screamed into the Lothal twilight, tears streaming unabated from her blue and green eyes. 

The ghost of Obi-Wan stood there, and let her rail at him. 

"She  _ loved you!  _ And you-you-" 

"Enarra and I made our choices." Obi-Wan said gently and she fell silent. Lu knew that he couldn't have made her mother do anything. Enarra may have been sad person, but she was stubborn and was not one to follow someone else's orders. "There was nothing she and I could have done for each other. Had she stayed at the Jedi temple and helped me train Anakin, perhaps things could have been different."

His rumbly, noble voice was laden with sadness. But the old Jedi spoke the truth. Lu knelt back down, sitting on her heels with her knees pulled into her chest, sobs wracking her body. Lu buried her head in her hands, and let herself cry. The anguish of what she'd seen in the vision, and her own crashing together, and spilling out. Unable to hold it back.

Obi-wans force ghost approached her, kneeling in front of her. She could  _ sense _ it, though he made no sound as he moved. He calmly and patiently waited as her sobs flooded out into the Lothal plains. As her cries subsided to stuttered breaths, he continued. 

"But I could not ask her to stay on Coruscant. After Qui-Gon's death. I loved her too much to ask that of her. It would be like taking a bird and clipping its wings. She would have only suffered more."

"More _?_ _More_?! How could she have suffered more? Tell me!" Lu demanded snapping her face from her hands and staring angrily at the old man. Her face scrunched with malice. She couldn't hold back, Enarra's pain she had felt in the vision coming forth, her anger. 

"Asking her to stay, would have meant risking Satine's heart." Obi-Wan told her, sad yet matter-of-fact. "Enarra would have never forgave herself if she became the rift between Satine and I…" 

" _ YOU _ were the rift between Enarra and  _ my father! _ Don't play your games of Jedi diplomacy with me!" Lu rose in a heartbeat; anger at its peak, standing and then leering over the ghost of Obi-Wan and pointed at his face; long fingernail glimmering. Breathing ragged from crying.

"I don't want your rationale! I want  _ my LIFE BACK!"  _ Lu screamed, throwing her hands wide and then pointing at herself. 

"You all  _ left me _ . All of you! I was a  _ child  _ and you all fought your wars and played your  _ fucking politics  _ instead of doing right by her!  _ BY ME! _ " and railed at him. He remained kneeling, letting her rage. She let it out no longer caring about being angry, she got up in his ghostly face anyway.

"And  _ now? _ You choose  _ now  _ to show up? Where  _ were you _ ?! Where the fuck was the Force when I got fucking sold to the Hutts? Where were you when I-I-... " Lu wailed, unable to continue. Her voice hoarse and scratchy. Chest burning and aching from the emotional turmoil. 

" _ Light forsake you Obi-Wan Kenobi!"  _ Lu cursed him.

The old Jedi Master simply stood up from kneeling. Sadness plain on his soft wrinkled face, his anguish was plain. The blue eyes her mother had loved so much looked back at her, full of acceptance and love. And grief. He seemed to be contemplating what to say next, pain clear on his gentle face. 

"I know your path has not been easy, and I know words cannot take it back. But I am  _ sorry _ , Luna." He sighed, "I cannot deny that Enarra had wanted things to be different… And a part of me cannot deny I wished for the same." The old Jedi spoke. His majestic voice gravelly with pain. And even after all these years Obi-Wan said her mother's name with such love and reverence.

"Your father was an exceptional man. I had considered him a friend, and an ally during battle. Testament to Kamsen's character, he refused to let the personal feelings get in the way of defending Kibahrr, and Enarra. In different circumstances, I'm sure we'd have been fast friends." 

Lu just stood there not knowing what to say or do. She was so  _ tired.  _ But the anger was starting to wane. This man could have been her father, he'd  _ wanted _ to be her father. And yet he still loved her biological father as a friend, and respected him. 

"I spent many days thinking of them. Wondering how you three were doing. When Enarra risked the visit to Tatooine, to bring you to meet me, it gave me hope. Seeing you, after she and Kamsen had been trying  _ so hard _ to conceive. I can  _ never _ forget that day… Please, Luna. Do not be angry with them. With Kamsen. He loved you, so  _ so  _ much, my dear." 

The old Jedi Master's ghost sounded so pained, but sure and steady. It hurt, yes, but it was clear he accepted her anger. Just as he had accepted Lu's fathers rage. She stood before the spirit of the man her mother loved, unable to speak. Obi-Wan spoke the truth. And being angry could not raise her parents from the dead. Could not change the past. 

Only finally having let herself feel it like this, could Lu finally, fully let go. Omera had helped her feel as though she had regained a moment in time with Enarra; but facing the man who'd been so important to her that he was undoubtedly a part of Lu's  _ song _ , was forcing her to confront her grief in a way she hadn't been wholly prepared for. Needed to feel her anger and acknowledge the resentment she had for a man she never knew. That she had for the people who'd her mother sacrificed so much for. 

But Lu couldn't hate Obi-Wan, just as she could hate Kamsen even though his abandonment still haunted her. Obi-Wan was just as much a victim of circumstance as her parents, as much as the Duchess of Mandalore. As much as Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala. 

They'd all made poor choices, Lu was given the history from her mother; a gift of hindsight, to know what happened. Communication breakdowns, an inability to have the time to take care with Anakin's struggles with attachments. And so much fear. Enarra's departure from Coruscant did not help, the slave boy being left with no one familiar; No time for the grace needed for them to be allowed to live and heal from everything they'd already endured. No time to grieve the collective father they'd lost in Qui-Gon Jinn. 

The Sith had far too long poisoned the Jedi Order and quietly grown in power. They all had the misfortune of being born at the wrong time, living through war that couldn't allow them to  _ love _ .

They'd all chosen duty, aside from Anakin. He chose love. But his fear of loss and inability to let go of his trauma was capitalized upon by the Dark side and the Emperor.

Enarra admitted that at every corner the decisions they'd made failed Anakin. And his fall to darkness rose an Empire to power. Where Obi-Wan chose to love two women while managing his attachments; Where Qui-Gon had succeeded in balancing himself in his love for Arruuna… Anakin failed, unable to let his love for Padme strengthen him; instead attachment ruled him and became his downfall. Her mother had never been able to get over her grief for the man she'd considered her brother; the little slave boy whose spirit called to her in  _ The Song _ and brought her to Tatooine. Believing very much that had she chosen differently, he may not have fallen. 

But she knew, Lu knew  _ very _ well, that sometimes there are no  _ good choices to make.  _ One can only make a choice, a decision, from the options at hand. If there are no good choices, you still  _ have  _ to choose; when the fate of so many innocent people across the entire Galaxy were in such jeopardy, one does not have the luxury of  _ not _ choosing. 

Pieces on the gameboard of the Galaxy, played by cosmic forces beyond mortal comprehension. And the Gods are a  _ fickle _ lot. 

"Had I been the one to father you, as we wanted. Your birth would have only served to tear apart the peace that had been rebuilt with Mandalore; Enarra knew it would not only cause Satine great personal pain, it would inevitably destroy the work laid by generations of your family… And the Galaxy may have suffered longer had Mandalore been additionally affected by the severed allegiance." Obi-Wan's gaze was far away as he continued to speak. Lu just stood, listening. Enarra had not told her these kinds of specifics.

"War did not leave us with many options, and peace so fragile. But even then, I believe Enarra was playing a long game. She knew the job would not be done with her. So, she chose Kamsen, and she had  _ you. _ " He looked at her then. 

"Me? She had me because she was trying to please the House leaders… Another High Priestess would be needed. The Houses dictated such." Lu scoffed, sniffling and rubbing tears from her face. Voice raw and hurt. Obi-Wan gently shook his head, and gave her a sympathetic look. 

"No. She had you because her light needed to remain in this Galaxy. Just a little while longer… She had you, because if she had to withstand the end of the Clone War without you, then she would have fallen to the Dark side herself; grief would have been too much to bear. And the Galaxy would have had even less hope for balance.

You gave her  _ purpose _ . You gave her hope when she had none, Little Luna. Enarra chose you because she needed a guiding light just as much as the rest of the Galaxy needed to hold onto hope."

Lu could only stare up at the wise Jedi Master as they stood in the clearing. His words rang _true_ even if she didn't want to admit it. She didn't _want_ to be anyone's hope. Couldn't handle being relied on like that, Lu wasn't her mother. She'd barely had much hope herself too, the Galaxy a cruel place. It hurt too much to be too hopeful. It was only recently she'd had a moment of respite from harshness. That she'd been given a glimmer of peace with the Mandalorian and his kid's arrival in her life. 

They looked at each other a moment, Lu processing his words. She was a tangle of despair and pain and relief. The Kibahrr, and the Jedi. Trying to find words to say but nothing would come. She felt like a little girl again, scared and unsure and hurt. 

"I-" She tried to start, voice hoarse. "I  _ miss her _ … so  _ much _ ." The old Jedi looked to her, sadness and grief plain. Lu forced herself to keep from crying, more would do no good. She had to scrunch her face to stop the dam from breaking. 

"I know. But she's with you, everywhere you go, within the Force. In your  _ song _ . Everytime you see your reflection, she's there." Obi-Wan's voice cradled her in love, this man she didn't know. The man who could have been her father. "You look just like her, but I see Kamsen in your face, too. Though, you looked more like him as a babe."

"Ha-yeah. Heard that a lot growing up." Lu told him, sniffling. Wiping errant tears away with the back of her bare hand. She was still sore, but her curiosity was overcoming her hurt. "But why are you here? Why now?" 

"The Jedi temple here was one where masters would take their padawans for a test. To test each the master  _ and  _ padawan, their bond, but to also gain trust in the Force so they could  _ let go _ of their attachments." He smiled then, the ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi. A cheeky, knowing look as he answered her in a roundabout way. 

"I'm no Jedi." She stated flatly. 

"A follower of the Order? No. You are not." He confirmed, nodding slightly. He crossed his arms, but raised a hand and idly stroked his beard, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "But the Galaxy was failed by the Order. And a follower of the Force you are, no less. And so, you were shown your test."

"The vision? Of the light path and the doors?" She asked, quirking her eyebrow at him. Still trying to work through the aftermath of the tsunami of feelings that she'd just gone through. And still feeling certainly confused. 

"The Force guides us all, its wisdom does not belong to Jedi alone." He answered without answering. Apparently he'd been good at that. "Follow the  _ Will _ of the Force, trust it. It swirls and gathers beings in its eddies and guides us."

His blue eyes hinting at the mischievousness that Enarra had often spoken so fondly of. Lu stared up at him, wishing desperately that he was still alive. Physically. She still felt lost, like she was flying blind if she thought about everything that had happened to her in the last several weeks. 

Against the night darkened morning, the gentle blue spectre of the Jedi Master's ghost began to fade.

"Follow where your heart leads you. Enarra taught you everything you needed to know of the nature of the Force. You have the chance to make the choices Enarra couldn't." Said the wise Jedi Master with his loving and noble voice. Lu swallowed, realizing she wasn't ready to part. She needed more guidance. What choices was she to make? What if she chose wrong and the Galaxy suffered again? 

"Please, Master Kenobi, don't go!" She called, reaching for his spirit. Feeling lost and desperately wanting to know more. 

"Trust your feelings, Little Luna. Don't let fear rule you any longer. We are  _ so proud _ of you…" his voice and spirit faded from her awareness. His presence rejoining the  _ Spirits Song  _ from whence he came. The inky blackness of the early morning around her, stars above indifferent, continuing to sparkle. 

Lu fell to her knees, and cried. She cried until her lungs hurt and her body wracked with involuntary gasps. When she ran out of tears, she wiped her face and brushed the dust and sand from her pant legs. She breathed deep, and let the sounds of the early Lothal morning soothe her. Calm her breathing. Smooth out the pain, and let it be carried away on the breeze. 

Off in the distance, Lu heard the howls of lothwolves. Haunting, sad. Many voices ringing out as one, echoing across the grass sea. Like the voice of many voices in the vision of the light trail paths and the doorways. 

When she was ready, she picked her sword up from the ground; the sun would be coming up soon, a thin strip of crimson signaling its impending rise. And began her drills. 

_ I will do just that. Master Kenobi. I will be my Mother's daughter.  _

_ And I will not be afraid.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


End file.
